Global Compact International Yearbook 2014

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Global Compact 

International Yearbook 

2014 

Global Compact International Yearbook 2014 1

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Global Compact International Yearbook 2014

GC International Yearbook 

H.E. Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General 

“ 

This year we are laying the groundwork for success 

in 2015 on three fronts: achieving the Millennium 

Development Goals, adopting a meaningful new climate 

agreement, and establishing a new vision for a sustainable 

future. 

I thank the Global Compact for elevating post-2015 

priorities on the agendas of business around the world. 

The year 2015 also marks the 15th anniversary of the 

Global Compact itself. This is the first and only publicprivate 

initiative of the United Nations based on network 

governance. Its unique role and attributes have enabled 

it to grow and innovate beyond all expectations. The 

initiative has transitioned to a new phase defined by 

global strength and action. 

One of my top priorities is to harness the full power 

of partnership across the range of UN activities and 

to scale up UN capacity to engage in transformative 

actions with the private sector as well as civil society, 

” 

philanthropy, and academia. 


THE POST-2015 BUSINESS 

ENGAGEMENT ARCHITECTURE 

By Georg Kell, Executive Director, UN Global Compact 

The United Nations is now embarking on a project unique to 

its history – the design of a set of global development goals 

that will meet the dual challenges of overcoming poverty and 

protecting the planet. This process provides an opportune 

moment to shape how business operates and contributes to 

sustainability in the coming decades. 

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) set a precedent 

for global priorities agreed to by all UN Member States. As 

MDG targets expire in 2015, two things are different: The 

new goals will incorporate the broader concept of sustainable 

development, balancing economic, social, and environmental 

aspects; they will apply to all countries, rather than primarily 

to the developing South. Also unprecedented is the scale of 

advance discussions on what priorities should be incorporated 

into the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

These talks occur at a moment of transition for much of the 

business community. As economic growth migrates to the 

South and the East, companies are increasingly evolving from 

4 


Agenda 

Keynote 

being resource-takers to market-builders, where they have a 

direct stake in building healthy societies. Businesses have an 

incentive to overcome bottlenecks – to train workers, technicians, 

and managers; support the health of workforces; support 

dependable infrastructure; maintain rather than degrade the 

viability of the natural environment; and reduce transaction 

costs brought on by corruption, illicit money flows, and other 

impediments to trade and investment. 

There is now an expanding group of enterprises whose policies 

and behavior are directly linked to sustainable development. 

Fundamentally, they recognize that what is good for societies 

and the planet is also good for business over the long term. 

The United Nations Global Compact is among the UN entities 

holding consultations on this post-2015 development agenda. 

Inputs from more than 40 Global Compact Local Networks 

formed the basis of a report to the UN Secretary-General that 

included a proto-set of sustainable development goals and 

targets. An “architecture” for engaging companies large and 

small to advance the post-2015 agenda was unveiled at our 

2013 Leaders Summit in New York. 

numbers of business organizations to act in concert or in 

collaboration on specific challenges such as climate, water, 

women’s empowerment, infrastructure, and jobs and education. 

4) Finance: The SDGs will require investments of a trillion dollars 

or more annually. Private sustainability finance – broadly 

understood as private finance that contributes to sustainable 

development – is a new concept that is likely to gain much 

broader attention throughout the private investment chain, 

from investors, banks, and other institutions in the financial 

economy, to corporations, foundations, and philanthropy. 

A number of notable gains in living standards have been 

achieved during the tenure (2001–2015) of the MDGs, in 

terms of poverty eradication, health, education, and access 

to clean water. The SDGs are likely to call for an even greater 

transformation in how the world collaborates on shared 

priorities. To ensure their success, we must work together to 

make responsible business a transformative force in achieving 

a shared, secure, and sustainable future. 

What will the post-2015 development agenda and a new set of 

SDGs mean for business and the UN Global Compact? While 

much is still up for debate with a September 2015 deadline 

for agreeing on the SDGs, already several hopeful prospects 

are unfolding: 

1) Corporate engagement: Many companies have found 

ways to innovate and align their corporate responsibility and 

sustainability programs with the MDGs. With an earlier start on 

the SDGs, the prospects for coordination with global priorities 

are much better. The UN Global Compact, the World Business 

Council for Sustainable Development, and the Global Reporting 

Initiative are already at work on a toolkit for measuring, 

monitoring, and reporting on SDG progress – to build trust 

with the public and among stakeholders, and to progressively 

upgrade corporate performance. 

2) Local Networks: The SDGs will likely place even greater 

emphasis on national implementation than the MDGs did. 

Multi-sector, responsible, business-led councils such as the 

Global Compact Local Networks have the potential to apply 

post-2015 elements to a country-level analysis of policies 

and tactics. As such, they can lend notable assistance to governmental 

decision-making. This local implementation of 

global goals will also place emphasis on engaging small- and 

medium-sized enterprises and upgrading their capacities. 

3) Partnerships: Multi-sector collective action or joint business 

activities that allow for pooling resources, sharing risks, 

and overcoming systemic challenges will rise in importance. 

These will include global issue platforms that mobilize large 

Download: http://bit.ly/17yfuNn 


8The Post-2015 Agenda 

40 

Climate Change 

KEYNOTE 

4 The Post-2015 Business 

Engagement Architecture 

Georg Kell 

THE POST-2015 AGENDA 

10 MDGs and SDGs: 

Are the Concepts Compatible? 

Dr. Markus Loewe 

16 The Architecture of a 

Sustainable Future 

Peter Bakker 

18 Corporate Responsibilities in 

the Context of the Post-2015 

Sustainable Development Agenda 

Prof. Dr. Klaus M. Leisinger 

MEASURING SDGs 

26 Going Beyond GDP – 

Measuring Social Progress 

Julia Vol 

29 Overview: 

Economic and Wealth Indicators 

30 Ten Lessons from Innovation 

Studies for a Sustainable 

Paradigm 

Dr. Paul Dewick, Jonathan Aylen 

33 A Big Data Revolution for 

Sustainable Development 

Robert Kirkpatrick 

36 Operationalizing Sustainability 

Targets: The Sustainable Value 

Approach 

Prof. Dr. Frank Figge, Dr. Tobias 

Hahn, Dr. Ralf Barkemeyer, and 

Dr. Andrea Liesen 

CLIMATE CHANGE 

42 A Pathway Toward Carbon 

Neutrality 

Interview: Christiana Figueres 

46 Aligning Flows of Capital with 

Tackling Climate Change 

James Leaton 

48 Reducing Carbon Emissions 

in Everyday Life 

Dr. Nicola Schuldt-Baumgart 

and Dr. Immanuel Stieß 

52 Primary Energy Consumption 

54 “The German Energiewende“ – 

Our Contribution to a 

Sustainable System 

Sigmar Gabriel 

56 How High is Sustainability on 

the European Policy Agenda? 

Elena Mocanu 

59 Sustainable Energy 

for All Targets 

TRACEABILITY 

62 Certification Brings 

Positive Impacts and Better 

Traceability to Business 

Karin Kreider 

66 The Global Organic Covenant 

Markus Arbenz 

68 Strong Farmer Organizations, 

Stronger Future 

Caroline Hickson 

70 “There’s No Point in Just 

Checking Off a List ” 

Interview: Maren Sartory 

71 UN Global Compact 

Launches Food and 

Agriculture Business 

Principles 

72 World’s First Guide on 

Traceability Advances Supply 

Chain Sustainability 

Elga D. Reyes 

74 Inside UNGC / BSR 

A Guide to Traceability 

6 


60 172 

Traceability Trends in CSR 

TRENDS IN CSR 

GOOD PRACTICE 

HUMAN RIGHTS 

80 Banca Popolare di Sondrio 

82 Green Delta Insurance 

84 Sanofi 

88 Sartex 

90 Teck 

92 TeliaSonera 

94 Transaero Airlines 

96 Yüksel 

LABOUR STANDARDS 

98 Adecco Group 

100 Audi 

102 Copeinca 

104 pervormance international 

106 PostNL 

108 RWE 

ENVIRONMENT 

112 Air France - KLM 

114 Arab African International Bank 

116 Consolidated Contractors Company 

118 Coop 

120 EDF Group 

122 Fjällräven 

124 GDF SUEZ 

126 MAN 

130 Metso 

132 Novo Nordisk 

134 Sakhalin Energy 

136 Thales 

138 Weidmüller 

ANTI-CORRUPTION 

140 Deutsche Bahn 

142 Volkswagen 

CSR MANAGEMENT 

146 BASF 

148 Bosch 

150 Deutsche Telekom 

152 The TMS Group 

DEVELOPMENT 

154 ACCIONA 

156 AYA Bank 

160 Deutsche Post DHL 

164 Nestlé 

166 Sayga 

168 SK 

FINANCIAL MARKETS 

170 Bradesco 

174 Between Voluntary 

and Mandatory CSR 

Dr. Elmer Lenzen 

180 Global Trends Toward 

Mandatory CSR 

182 India’s CSR Story 

Dr. Utkarsh Majmudar and 

Namrata Rana 

184 Sustainability Standards for 

US Corporate 10-K Reporting 

186 European Union Introduces 

Mandatory Reporting 

SECTIONS 

188 Resources 

190 Editorial Board 

192 Imprint 

193 The Ten Principles 


8 


Agenda 

The Post-2015 Agenda 

THE POST-2015 AGENDA 

From Millennium Development Goals to Sustainable Development Goals 


MDGs AND SDGs: 

ARE THE CONCEPTS 

COMPATIBLE? 

By Dr. Markus Loewe 

For the last 20 years, the international development debate has 

been dominated by two trends that seem, at first, to be heading 

in a similar direction. However, under closer scrutiny, they 

differ with respect to their focus and underlying philosophies. 

On the one hand, there is the agenda of reducing poverty in 

developing countries in its various dimensions, which found 

its expression in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). 

On the other hand, there is the idea of sustainability that became 

popular at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 

and that, at the Rio+20 summit in 2012, generated a parallel 

concept to the MDGs: the so-called Sustainable Development 

Goals (SDGs). 

As a result, two separate processes started within the United 

Nations (UN) system: one of them to discuss whether there 

should be a new global development agenda after the term 

of the MDGs ends in 2015, and what such an agenda should 

entail; and the other to compile a list of possible SDGs. Fortunately, 

the UN took a decision in September 2013 that there 

should be only one post-2015 list of goals that has both an 

SDG and post-MDG agenda. 

The challenge is, however, to design such an agenda that fulfils 

the aspirations of both the proponents of the MDG concept as 

well as the proponents of the SDG concept. This article suggests 

that the post-2015 agenda should consist of two separate 

but mutually referring sets of goals – one concentrating on 

human development, the other on global public goods. 

10 


Agenda 


Emergence of the MDG concept 

The MDGs are the result of a process that began in the 

1980s that aims at making aid more effective and focusing 

it more on poverty reduction. In addition, it started to look 

at poverty as a multi-facetted phenomenon rather than just 

a lack of income. 

In a number of world conferences, long lists of goals in the 

areas of education, food, child development, and more were 

adopted. The most important of these goals were consolidated 

in the UN’s Millennium Declaration, from which the MDGs 

were taken in 2001. 

The strength of the MDGs is that they constitute a manageable 

number of straightforward goals that are easy to understand 

and measure, and they offer a clear deadline. This made it 

possible to rekindle the interest in development issues in the 

countries of the North and strengthen the willingness to put 

more resources into aid. Further, the MDGs have increased the 

accountability of all relevant actors of international development, 

which has contributed to greater results-orientation 

and effectiveness of development policy. 

Limitations to the MDG concept 

Critics argue, however, that there are too many limitations 

to the MDG concept. 

First, the MDGs are an incomplete agenda. They originated in 

the Millennium Declaration but cover only two of its chapters 

(on development and the environment), completely leaving 

out the chapters on disarmament and good governance. 

Second, the MDGs neglect distributive issues. Inequality is a 

severe obstacle to many aspects of development. Nevertheless, 

the MDG agenda contains only one indicator (under the heading 

of MDG 1) capturing one aspect of distribution: the share of 

the poorest quintile in consumption. In addition, the focus of 

MDG 1, at least, is on the most deprived individuals in society. 

In contrast, MDGs 4 and 5, for example, call for improvements 

in mean values of mortality rates, thereby ignoring who 

benefits from such progress. As a consequence, many governments 

may be tempted to reduce child and maternal mortality 

rates for social groups that already enjoy below-average rates 

(such as, e.g., the urban middle class). Progress for these groups 

may be cheaper and easier to achieve than for the most deprived 


groups, who often live in squatter and rural settlements, thus 

making it more difficult for healthcare services to reach them. 

Third, some MDGs measure outputs or inputs rather than 

outcomes or impacts of development. MDG 2, for example, 

measures only the intake of education, regardless of its quality 

or relevance for economic, social, and political life. Its existence 

has led to a significant acceleration in the rise of school 

enrollment rates. But in many countries this has been at the 

expense of the quality of education: More children went to 

school, but the number of teachers and the space in school 

buildings did not increase correspondingly. 

Fourth, some MDGs cannot even be measured – either because 

no indicators or targets were set, or because no data is 

available for certain indicators. 

Fifth, the MDGs cannot easily be transformed into national 

objectives. They were originally formulated as global goals, 

but without modification they were increasingly seen as 

national objectives in order to create national accountability. 

This interpretation constitutes a particular challenge to the 

least-developed countries, which tend to have started out in 

the baseline year of 1990 with much poorer performance 

levels than other countries with regards to most MDG indicators. 

Therefore, it has been especially hard for them, for 

instance, to achieve MDG 1c, which calls for a reduction by 

half in the share of malnourished people between 1990 and 

2015. Countries that start with a higher share of people with 

malnutrition have more difficulties in achieving the goal 

than other countries, because the goal implies the need for 

a much greater reduction in the absolute number of people 

with hunger. 

Sixth, some goals at the global level were unrealistic right 

from the start (e.g., MDG 2, which demands total enrollment 

in primary education worldwide), whereas others demonstrate 

low ambitions, at least at the global level (e.g., MDG 1, which 

seeks to halve the share of people suffering from income 

poverty and hunger across the globe). 

Furthermore, many criticize the MDGs as well for being too 

focused on the social sectors and neglecting the production 

sectors and economic development. This judgment, however, 

is unfair for two reasons: First, the MDGs do not focus on particular 

sectors, but on goals of human development. Achieving 

the health goals (MDGs 4–6) may well require investments 

in healthcare, but it may also (and often even more) call for 

investments in the education or water sector. Second, economic 

growth, transport infrastructure, and a functioning private 

sector tend to be essential as preconditions for long-term 

poverty reduction and the achievement of the MDGs. But they 

are not ends in themselves and should therefore not have a 

place in an MDG agenda. 

12 


Agenda 


Emergence of the SDG concept 

Proponents of an SDG agenda further criticize three other 

aspects of the MDGs: (i) They are not global goals and ultimately 

put obligations on the developing countries; (ii) they 

are generally short- to medium-term, and thus run counter to 

policies that are oriented toward sustainability, which necessarily 

have to be inherently longer-term; (iii) central areas of 

sustainable policies – chiefly environmental objectives – are 

not reflected sufficiently. 

These points of criticism are justified. The first one can be addressed 

by formulating goals in a way that takes the stages of 

development of individual countries into account. The other 

two question the MDGs more generally. However, current 

proposals for a future SDG agenda so far have not created an 

alternative to the second criticism. It, too, envisions a rather 

short-term horizon, and the indicators suggested so far do not 

include aspects of sustainability. The proposed agenda differs 

from the MDGs mostly in that there is a wider range of goals 

that matter from a sustainability perspective. 

Of course, the MDGs are not a purely socio-political agenda, 

and neither would potential SDGs be just focused on the 

environment. Both approaches involve similar ideas. They 

differ mostly with respect to their underlying thinking: 

Whereas the MDGs are mostly inspired by improving the 

living conditions of the poorest people, the main concern 

of SDGs is shaping development sustainably. 

Consequences for the post-2015 agenda 

There needs to be coordination when incorporating the agendas 

of the MDGs and SDGs into the post-2015 agenda. Indeed, 

it is necessary to design an integrated agenda for post 2015 

that takes the poverty as well as the sustainability debates 

into account. 

Such an agenda should have the strengths of the MDG concept 

while avoiding its weaknesses. Its goals should hence: 

• be relevant in both objective and subjective terms like the 

MDGs; 

• contain once again only a limited number of easy-to-understand 

goals; 

• be goals for people, such as the MDGs, that is, final end-goals 

rather than instruments; 

• be SMART (specific, measurable, agreed, realistic, timelimited); 

• be more comprehensive than the MDGs (i.e., include additional 

dimensions of development / well-being such as, e.g., 

political, socio-cultural, and protective capabilities); 

• consider distributional issues; 

• avoid inconsistencies (all targets should focus on outcomes 

rather than inputs or outputs); 

• be truly universal, that is, defined on the global level but 

relevant and applicable nationally for all countries; 

• be binding for all countries, though; 

• be ambitious but realistic and fair – globally and for every 

single country; and 

• ensure the sustainability of development. 

Selection of goals 

A major issue in the negotiations on a future development 

agenda, which started in early 2014, is the question of which 

goals should be included. The discussions on this issue should 

be guided by the selection criteria listed in the previous section. 

In any case, it is almost beyond any dispute that the issues 

concerning reduction of income poverty, food security, education, 

health, family planning, and gender equality will show 

up again in one way or another. In addition, it is a good 

idea – agreed upon by most countries – to include a goal 

infrastructure that will encompass the already included subgoals 

of water and sanitation, as well as adequate housing 

and energy supply. 

Further, there might possibly be agreement on a goal concerning 

resilience that refers to human and social security – that is, 

the protection of human beings against social risks; economic 

risks; natural and ecological risks (e.g., earthquakes, floods, 


POSSIBLE STRUCTURE OF A POST-2015 INTERNATIONAL 

AGENDA IN TWO PARTS 

Part 1: 

Human development objectives 

(final goals of development) 

5 – 8 goals such as, for example: 

• Reduction of income poverty 

• Food security 

• Education 

• Health and family planning 

• Infrastructure 

(energy, housing, water, and sanitation) 

• Clean environment 

(air, water, resources) 

• Resilience 

(social protection, human security) 

• Good governance 

(transparency, efficiency, political 

participation, human and civil rights) 

Monitoring: on the local (micro) level and 

differentiated by gender, income, and location 

in order to control for the distribution of policy 

outcomes (equality) 

Part 2: 

Essential global public goods 

(instrumental goals / enablers of 

development) 

5 – 8 goals such as, for example: 

• Limiting climate change 

• Joint global management of resources 

(oceans, the atmosphere, space, the polar 

regions, fresh water resources) 

• Contention of infectious diseases 

• Stability of financial markets 

• Open, rules-based, and fair 

world trade system 

• Clean environment 

(air, water, resources) 

• Control of international terrorism 

• Disarmament of anti-personnel mines 

and weapons of mass destruction 

Monitoring: on the international level 

drought); man-made ecological disasters (e.g., river pollution, 

deforestation, nuclear disasters); and social and political risks 

(e.g., theft, rioting, resettlement, war, coup d‘état). 

In spite of possible opposition from certain countries, it would 

also be desirable to introduce a framework for political and 

socio-cultural capabilities (e.g., human rights, good governance, 

peace, social inclusion). 

In addition, it would be desirable to take distributive issues into 

consideration. This does not mean introducing an additional 

goal distribution but rather measuring achievements toward 

each goal separately for different population groups. It would 

be even better to give results different weight according to the 

segments of the population (rich and poor, women and men, 

urban and rural, disadvantaged and privileged, etc.) in order 

to avoid that countries as a whole make sufficient progress 

toward goals that are due to fast progress by some population 

groups and stagnation by others. 

Most controversial is what can be done to improve the status 

of environmental goals. The Rio+20 Declaration suggests a 

number of objectives for a prospective SDG agenda. Many 

are already included in the MDG agenda as sub-goals or 

indicators (i.e., biodiversity, protection of forests, reducing 

carbon emissions), but their status and the commitments 

14 


Agenda 


made to them could be strengthened. Others are outcomes 

of development, and thus could easily be included in a 

new agenda (such as protection against desertification or 

soil degradation). But the same is much more difficult to 

accomplish for goals that cannot be measured according 

to indicators at the micro-level and that, strictly speaking, 

are not actually final goals, but rather instruments, that is, 

“enablers” of development, for example climate stability. 

Without them, many final end goals of development cannot 

be achieved in the long term. 

A two-part agenda 

Because of this instrumental relationship, it makes sense to 

differentiate between them and final goals of human development 

(see left side). It would be conceivable to establish an 

international development agenda in two parts: one of which 

would concern itself with final goals of human development, 

and the other with the creation / protection of global public 

goods that are key enablers (preconditions) of human development. 

The latter would build on MDG 8 and also contain all 

those goals that the world community can only achieve by 

working together. The former would include MDGs 1-7 and 

some sustainability goals that are now missing in the MDG 

agenda. Such a division makes sense because (i) the goals on 

either side of the agenda are conceptually different; (ii) improvements 

for the former can be measured at the national 

and sub-national levels as well as globally, whereas for the 

latter in general they can only be measured globally; (iii) the 

goals of both parts are instrumentally linked. 

Moreover, this would also take into account the concerns of 

proponents of a new MDG agenda as well as those in favor 

of SDGs. Such a division into two parts would limit the marginalization 

of goals for poverty reduction, while the second 

part would ensure that the most important criteria of sustainable 

development would at least be taken into account. 

MDGs and SDGs would be combined to form a unified agenda, 

living up to the expectations of the paradigms of both poverty 

and sustainability. 

The objectives of this agenda should be global in every sense 

of the word: The goals of the second part are global by definition, 

as they refer to global public goods and can thus only 

be measured globally. But those of the first part should also 

apply to all nations rather than just the developing countries, 

as is the case with the current MDGs. This will require 

differentiation to transform the global goals into national 

objectives, making them both achievable but also ambitious, 

according to each country’s capacities. This will encourage 

the reduction of poverty, mortality, and school dropout rates 

in the rich countries as well. 

Whether such an agenda will come together has yet to be seen. 

After all, more important than its actual manifestation is that 

it needs to be accepted by all governments and societies. In 

contrast to the inception of the MDGs in 2001, the developing 

countries need to be fully involved in the elaboration of 

the new agenda right from the beginning, and the concerns 

of governments and NGOs both in the North and the South 

need to be considered in equal measure. 

Dr. Markus Loewe 

is a Senior Researcher at the German 

Development Institute / Deutsches 

Institut für Entwicklungpolitik (DIE) 

in Bonn. 


THE ARCHITECTURE OF 

A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE 

By Peter Bakker 

To create a sustainable future, we first have to be able to envision 

a future that is radically different from the world we 

know today. That means that the first step for any organization 

wanting to “become sustainable” is to have a vision of what 

its activities, products, or services would look like if it were, 

in fact, “sustainable” – not just in terms of the impacts and 

dependencies on the people and resources a company requires, 

but also with regard to the broader environmental and societal 

impacts of its activities. 

In 2010 the World Business Council for Sustainable Development 

(WBCSD) published a groundbreaking piece of work: 

Vision 2050. It was the first time that global business publicly 

stated that business as usual was no longer an option. Our 

vision is incredibly simple, as all grand goals must be: that by 

2050, 9 billion people will be able to live well, safely within 

planetary boundaries. 

Vision 2050 outlines pathways that map a transformational 

change of existing systems to achieve this overarching goal. 

WBCSD’s Action2020 platform concentrates on addressing 

nine science-based priorities with business solutions that 

can result in measurable positive impacts at scale. The nine 

priority areas for action were selected and range from climate 

change to ecosystems and land use, and from basic needs and 

rights to sustainable lifestyles. 

These science-based, actionable priorities, and the societal goals 

that were developed alongside them, form the core of WBCSD’s 

Action2020 work platform. With our members, we are working 

to develop business solutions that can have a measurable and 

significant impact toward achieving these 2020 societal goals 

– we call them “Societal Must-Haves.” They need to be scalable, 

replicable, beyond business as usual, and, most importantly, able 

to overcome barriers that will inevitably appear in their way. 

16 


Agenda 


Of course, business cannot do everything by itself. It is in a 

unique position with unique capabilities – it has the financial 

resources to develop innovative products and services, and 

it has management and technological capabilities to bring 

them to scale. But to achieve ambitious and audacious societal 

goals, business will need the support of smart policies, capital 

markets, education institutions, and, above all, a collective 

acceptance of the need for change at all levels of all societies. 

Part of this change will be redefining “value.” We need to 

move away from a model where shareholder value is the 

only criteria for measuring business performance to a model 

where financial, social, and natural capital are measured and 

managed in an integrated way. 

It is for these reasons that WBCSD and the Global Reporting 

Initiative partnered with the UN Global Compact to develop 

the Post-2015 Business Engagement Architecture. At its center 

is a new corporate sustainability philosophy that expands the 

definition to include a company’s delivery of long-term value 

in economic, social, environmental, and ethical terms. The 

architecture is built on a foundation of long-term business goals 

that protect corporate “value.” Advancing inclusive growth, 

social equity and progress, and environmental protection 

are accepted as key factors of sustainable revenue stability, 

resource productivity, and the mitigation of operational, legal, 

and reputational risks. 

The architecture is designed not only to support the ability of 

global business to deliver long-term strength and resilience, 

“ 

Vision 2050 

outlines pathways 

that map a transformational 

change 

of existing systems 

to achieve this 

overarching goal. 

” 

but also to enhance the overlaps between public and private 

interests, which are essential to increasing overall engagement 

in taking action to scale. 

The architecture is available for all. We are working to create 

a world where it makes perfect business sense to follow its 

guidelines, where more sustainable companies are recognized 

and rewarded, and where the world and the societies we live 

in also benefit. 

The overlap between Action2020 and the post-2015 issue 

priorities emphasizes the potential of business to bring about 

meaningful change. Forward-looking companies see this as 

an essential route to securing the futures of their businesses 

– to their own future sustainability. Together, we have set 

out on a journey where business plays its part in creating a 

sustainable future. Join us. 

Peter Bakker 

is President & CEO, World Business 

Council for Sustainable Development 

(WBCSD). 


CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITIES 

IN THE CONTExT OF 

THE POST-2015 SUSTAINABLE 

DEVELOPMENT AGENDA 

By Prof. Dr. Klaus M. Leisinger 

The shared understanding of a majority of scientists, representatives 

of civil society, and multilateral institutions as well as of a 

growing number of enlightened leaders from the private sector 

is clear: Global economic, social, and environmental systems 

are on an unsustainable trajectory. Phenomena such as climate 

change, extreme weather events, rising sea levels, acidification 

of marine ecosystems, loss of biological diversity, and other environmental 

changes are likely to have negative impacts on the 

development opportunities and choices of future generations. 

The consumption of nonrenewable resources continues to be 

much higher than the substitution through renewable resources. 

Extreme poverty, poor health, inadequate nutrition, and other 

forms of human deprivation are widespread and reduce development 

opportunities of the generation living today. One 

result is increased internal as well as international migration 

– depriving rural areas and poor countries of the most valuable 

development resource: the initiative and skills of young 

people. Even in rich countries, income and wealth disparities 

are widening, and high unemployment – particularly among 

young people – is becoming endemic. The world population 

will grow from today’s 7.2 billion people to more than 9 billion 

by the year 2050. 

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Agenda 


On the other hand 

Despite all this, there is no reason to surrender to melancholic 

pessimism. When resources are priced properly, resourceintensive 

and ecologically damaging goods will become more 

expensive – and hence less attractive. Competition encourages 

producers to make the use of such goods cost-effective 

– that is, to minimize their use. Companies that take their 

responsibility toward the environment seriously and develop 

better products and processes will have a competitive edge. 

Under such conditions, the competition inherent in open 

markets becomes the primary driving force for the creation 

of ecologically-sound technology. If markets were made to 

work for the environment by applying “full-cost pricing” along 

with the polluter pays principle, ecological innovation will be 

encouraged on the product and process levels. 

When The Limits to Growth was published in 1972, it created 

enormous fears. Things developed differently, as the views 

around the first UN Conference on the Human Environment 

underestimated the potential of economic feedback mechanisms 

and human creativity to lead to improved technologies, 

substitution mechanisms, and modified patterns of behavior. 

Despite the world population having more than doubled over 

the last 50 years and a substantial increase in consumption, 

most metals, food, and other natural resources have become 

more available rather than scarcer over time. As most of the 

world’s known reserves increased, the prices (adjusted for 

inflation) of most natural resources came down. The main 

pollutants have declined in most industrial countries, and 

air and water quality have improved – new threats, such 

as the accumulation of greenhouse gases, have developed. 

Microorganisms such as smallpox, plague, cholera, typhus, 

and the like, which threatened the lives and health of earlier 

generations in industrial countries, have been successfully 

conquered and are much better contained than they were 

50 years ago. There has also been spectacular progress in the 

management of diseases such as HIV and malaria. 

Will the future be so different? Those believing in human 

ingenuity as a powerful force make an important contribution 

to the sustainable development debate by pointing out that 

we should be interested not so much in a specific resources 

per se (copper, for example) but in the particular services that 

resources can yield (such as the capacity to conduct electricity). 

The same point was made long ago by Amory Lovins in arguing 

for the potential of energy efficiency. If the services required 

for sustainable development can be supplied by other resources 

(such as optical fibers or hydrogen-based energy), the availability 

of the original resource (copper or fossil resources) has 

no great significance. If scientists are able to assemble atoms 

and molecules into new materials that can be substituted for 

a scarce resource, that specific scarcity becomes irrelevant. 

There is no reason to assume that similar mechanisms will 

not help to deal with emission issues better. 

Creating awareness about actual and potential problems associated 

with the “business as usual trajectory” and drawing 

attention to possible associated outcomes remains an important 

part of the sustainable development discourse: Warning 

voices provoke new thinking and different perspectives, and 

they trigger political reactions as well as changes in human 

behavior that, in their entirety, confute all predictions. The real 

world is characterized by continuous feedback mechanisms and 

interactions (circular interdependence), and human ingenuity 

holds out the promise of endless innovations. Nothing remains 

unchanged, since humans respond intelligently to altered 

circumstances, to conflicts and shortages: Intensive research 

yields new knowledge and significant technical innovations. For 

this reason, the competition for resources between current and 

future generations need not be a zero-sum game in which one 


party can only win if the others lose. Owing to technological 

progress, what the present generation regards as “sustainable” 

may be totally irrelevant for future generations. The opportunities 

created by technological advances and appropriate 

(full-cost) pricing continue therefore to be highly significant 

for the sustainable development debate – they help stretch 

the time needed for eventual changes in human behavior with 

regard to their production, consumption, and waste patterns. 

A precautionary approach for sustainable development… 

Despite all this, there is no reason to propose an undifferentiated 

business-as-usual approach. What is to be developed is a 

“middle path” between approaches that tend to move toward 

the future in the spirit of Hans Jonas’s “heuristics of fear” and 

businesses, and civil society organizations. The minimum 

criteria are the protection of human rights, a rational, responsible, 

and transparent use of authority, as well as allocation 

of funds in the management of a country’s or institution’s 

economic, ecological, social, and political resources. 

… and a new standard of practices for all 

The goal of the sustainable development discourse – very 

similar to the aspiration articulated in the preamble of the 

Universal Declaration of Human Rights – is a new common 

standard of practices for all peoples and all nations, to the 

end that every individual and every organ of society. Given 

the scale and complexity of problems to be solved, individual 

actors or institutions by themselves cannot make a decisive 

those who believe that improved technologies and new research 

findings open up completely new possibilities for future action 

– that is, an unfettered business-as-usual optimism. What ought 

to be kept in mind is the precautionary principle accepted 

by the international community in 1992 with its support of 

the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development. So, 

the challenges that need to be overcome in order to design 

a sustainable development path are immense. There is no 

universal blueprint. Whatever changes, the main features of 

“Development with a Human Face” will continue to be 

• economic prosperity, that is, higher discretionary income, 

and thus an increase in personal choices – but above all 

an end to extreme poverty and hunger; 

• distributional fairness of available opportunities and social 

inclusion as well as fair access to social services; 

• environmental stewardship, that is, respecting planetary 

boundaries in all investments as well as production and 

consumption decisions; and 

• good governance at the international level, as well as in every 

country and by all sectors of society, including governments, 

difference. Successful endeavors to change the development 

path necessitate a multistakeholder approach, whereby the 

international community, multilateral institutions, national 

governments, regional institutions, civil society, and the business 

sector as well as individual households share responsibility 

and commit resources, skills, and know-how to achieve 

sustainable solutions in a fair way. In the same way that a 

nation’s economic and social success is greatest when there 

is a fair division of labor and responsibility between different 

societal actors, sustainable development will benefit from 

shared values and common understanding over basic issues 

and opportunities. 

The primary responsibility for human development undoubtedly 

continues to rest with national governments and their 

administrations. It is their duty to set the appropriate priorities, 

allocate the resources available to them accordingly, and 

work in the most cost-effective way. But the corporate sector 

– the single most efficient source of economic activity – has 

its share of responsibilities, too. 

20 


Agenda 


Corporate risks and opportunities in the context of the 

post-2015 development agenda 

Assuming sustainable development–related responsibilities 

means different things in different sectors; in all cases it is likely 

to involve additional costs and expenses. However, these ought 

to be considered as strategic investments for the continuance 

of old – and the creation of new – business opportunities. 

Rising societal sensitivity in high-income and emerging countries 

will result in a more pronounced awareness of the 

growing dangers and the positive or negative roles played 

by sectors and individual businesses. As public expectations 

grow, businesses are well-advised to look beyond short-term 

market signals and work closely with multilateral institutions, 

governments at all levels, scientific institutions, and civil 

society to identify sustainable development challenges and 

implement solutions. Business may not be able to solve all 

these problems, but business cannot thrive in a society that 

fails to solve them. 

Companies that establish a reputation for problem-solving 

are likely to be rewarded with government and community 

support. They are likely to enjoy differential acknowledgement 

and be seen as reliable partners in addressing long-term 

sustainable development challenges. This again is likely to 

allow them to help shape public policies in support of sustainable 

development, improve their positioning in the present 

and future marketplace, and maintain their social license to 

operate and grow. 

Companies and sectors on the wrong side of sustainable 

development are likely in the long term to face diminishing 

opportunities and increasing challenges. Such companies 

may, in the short term, continue to earn – and even increase 

– their profits, even while they despoil the environment or 

ignore other societal needs, but they will not thrive in the 

long term as societies and governments gradually revoke their 

(social) license to operate. Indeed, the very survival of those 

companies is threatened when they come to be seen as being 

directly opposed to the interests of society. 

Probably the most important obstacle for corporate actions 

in line with the requirements of sustainable development is 

the current structure of incentives: The costs and expenses for 

business enterprises occur today, whereas the possible return on 

investment is likely to become a reality “later” – and certainly 

outside current accounting cycles. The widespread focus on 

short-term performance in the context of financial markets, 

quarterly corporate reporting cycles, and – for politicians – 

the rhythm of election cycles constitutes a potentially high 

hurdle for long-term returns. Enlightened corporate leaders 

today already agree that a business that strives to save on costs 

or exploit opportunities by going to the edge of what is legally 

permissible instead of living up to the spirit of a UN Global 

Compact–based corporate responsibility philosophy may look 

better in the short term, but it is likely to create higher risks 

of accidents or perceived misconduct. Therefore, when faced 

with dubious legal standards, good management practices 

wisely exercise self-restraint and avoid morally ambivalent 

business practices. 

Enlightened corporate leaders today also agree that economic 

success achieved with collateral social or ecological damages 

– or, even worse, human rights violations – offends human 

dignity (including the dignity of those responsible for such 

conduct) and destroys public trust. You do not have to study 

moral philosophy and make complex ethical analyses to come 

to the conclusion that corporate activities should do no harm 

and that international norms ought to be respected – these 

minimal moralia simply represent good management practices 

and mere decency. 

What is needed is the application of this responsibility mindset 

to a long-term time frame and appropriate actions today 

in view what is demanded in a long-term perspective. This 

requires leadership profiles and value management of a different 

kind. Corporate leaders will have to participate in the 

public discourse on sustainable development; be exposed 

to and learn from constituencies outside the business silo; 

create transparency; and explain complexity as well as share 

dilemmas. Management of the manifold dilemmas posed in 

the context of corporate responsibilities for the post-2015 

development agenda necessitates a values-based approach 

and a reference to what the High-Level Panel emphasized in 

its report A New Global Partnership: Eradicate Poverty and 

Transform Economies through Sustainable Development: 

namely, a global moral common sense. 

Common values for sustainable development 

We are faced with an incentives problem. Barely existing today 

are the incentives for individuals or institutions to: 

• pay or invest in something now that might bring a return 

on investment in the long term; 

• accept changes in accustomed production and consumption 

habits for a long-term benefit; 

• endure uncomfortable alteration due to different patterns of 

individual mobility now for an infinitely small contribution 

to the prevention of problems in the future; 

• change other aspects of the “courant normale”; or 

• for politicians, inflict short-term burdens for long-term change 

on their constituencies. 

The “costs” accrue immediately, whereas the returns become 

apparent only in the long run, and for different people probably 

at different places in the world – if at all (because deterioration 

of the status quo has been prevented due to the impact of the 


changes). Awareness-raising through education and advocacy, 

tax reforms so that all costs tell the ecological and social truth, 

and appeals for enlightened self-interest will be necessary to 

motivate a small but increasing number of people worldwide. 

Above all, sustainable progress for a global development path 

that is compatible with our planetary boundaries and the 

sound opportunities of future generations to satisfy their needs 

depends on a common ethical denominator. A “future we want 

for all” rests on the core values of human rights, equality of 

opportunity, and social as well as ecological sustainability. The 

identification with a global common moral ground may allow 

for an enlightened common interest perspective. It is only this 

that is likely to make it possible for individuals and institutions 

to “give” without immediately “taking,” to forgo superficial 

consumption today for the benefit of the preservation of scarce 

resources, or to invest now for the benefit of other people’s 

children living in the future elsewhere in the world. Only the 

internalization of a common minimum of core values such as 

respect for life and human dignity; mutual respect; peaceful 

settlement of conflicts of interest; justice and fairness; and the 

firm intention to honor the Golden Rule principle of reciprocity 

– that is, to treat others as you would wish to be treated 

– opens the possibility to find a common sustainable path for 

human development. If and when lifestyle models such as 

“sophisticated modesty,” “smart simplicity,” and “prosperity 

light” become fashionable, they are likely to become attractive 

as development patterns for the rising middle-class populations 

of the world. The evidence that “more” in terms of conspicuous 

consumption does not necessarily mean “more” in terms of 

happiness and quality of life has been shown clearly. 

As stated by the World Commission on Culture and Development, 

another important commonality in the work just cited 

is that human development can no longer be perceived as “a 

single, uniform, linear path, for this would inevitably eliminate 

cultural diversity and experimentation, and dangerously limit 

humankind’s creative capacities in the face of a treasured past 

and an unpredictable future.” Last but not least, there is a 

pronounced need for political and corporate leadership, one 

“made strong by vision, sustained by ethics, and revealed by 

political courage that looks beyond the next elections.” The 

corresponding equivalent for business leaders would be moral 

courage that looks beyond short-term economic results. 

General affirmation of normative terms versus concrete 

rejection in a specific context 

So far, so good. But the next step – the operationalization and 

application of such abstract common values – is a complex 

task. We owe Michael Walzer for the important consideration 

that the basic approval of a general abstract norm among 

people does not necessarily mean consent in the application 

of such a norm to specific circumstances. As he states in his 

book Thick and Thin. Moral Argument at Home and Abroad: 

“Moral terms have minimal and maximal meanings; we can 

standardly give thin and thick account of them, and the two 

accounts are appropriate to different contexts, serve different 

purposes.” When evaluating the Ten Principles proposed by 

the Global Compact or those recommended by the Sustainable 

Development Solutions Network, reasonable people all over the 

world will agree that they are right on target; no rational person 

can disagree with goals such as “ending poverty,” “qualitative 

education for all,” “good governance and realization of human 

rights,” “gender equality,” and “health and well-being at all 

ages.” Most experts in the different science categories will also 

agree on the targets associated with the goals. From a corporate 

perspective, however, this agreement and support is “thin.” 

In order to operationalize them – to make the agreement and 

the support “thick” – the potential (general) responsibilities 

will have to be differentiated at least 

• by industry sector (given that the pharmaceutical industry, 

the extractive industry, the agro industry, the textile industry, 

the financial industry, and any other industry have – besides 

the nonnegotiable duty to adhere to the law and regulations 

– very little in common); 

• by initial condition and resource base of a company (given 

that small and medium enterprises in low-income countries 

have totally different resource bases – and thus breadths 

and depths of their responsibility portfolios – than highperformance 

multinationals from OECD countries); 

• by culture context (given that valuations about “desirable” and 

“undesirable” vary according to different “collective programming 

of the mind, that distinguishes the members of one group 

or category of people from another.... with consequences for 

beliefs, attitudes, and skills as well as systems of values,” as 

stated by G. Hofstede in Culture’s Consequences); and 

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Agenda 


The appropriate way for a company to proceed is to undergo 

a similar strategic reflection process regarding the Ten Principles 

of the Global Compact in general, and to reflect – and 

possibly consult – with specific stakeholders about what 

their post-2015 development agenda responsibilities could be. 

• In light of the encouragement about “taking action in support 

of broader UN goals and issues,” what can the company 

do, and what is it willing to engage? 

• In what areas does the company have experience, skills, 

resources, and networks in connection with its core competences 

that would be especially useful in supporting broader 

UN goals? 

• Who are the relevant stakeholders with whom the company 

could cooperate in strategic social investments and philanthropy? 

What are their stakes and expectations? What are 

the experiences from earlier cooperation? 

• How does the company proceed if the expectations of civil 

society conflict with those of the financial community? 

• Which are the areas that could lead to a business case in the 

years to come? 

• Is the company willing to allocate human resources and 

financial budgets over three to five years to allow for a sustainable 

program rather than short-term projects? 

Sustainable development value management 

• by the “do no harm” principles of the Global Compact and 

the “do good” requirements of its LEAD initiative. 

Also in the context of the corporate responsibilities for the 

post-2015 development agenda, the top management of a company 

will have to go through a conscious management cycle. 

Nice words are fine, but hens lay eggs 

The wisdom of the African proverb about hens laying eggs 

puts the intuitive sentiment in one sentence: Articulating nice 

statements and issuing attractive brochures does not really 

help. On the contrary, if actual performance deviates from 

the messages given, there will be cynicism and frustration 

on the side of the employees, and if the actual performance 

deviates from public expectation, external criticism will arise. 

Companies competing with integrity have answered the basic 

question: They want to be “part of the solution,” not “part of 

the problem.” 

Once this groundwork is done, corporate management will have 

choices from a structured portfolio and can set the priorities 

that fit best with the overall corporate strategy. And then – as 

usual in value management – SMART targets have to be set; 

internal and external communication initiated; employees and 

business partners committed and incentivized; performance 

appraisals, promotion criteria, bonus systems, and compliance 

management adjusted appropriately; and benchmarking done. 

Allocating time for top management to reflect on such issues 

is, in my experience, the most important element of a successful 

corporate responsibility process, as it goes beyond the 

business-as-usual trajectory. Dialogue with internal and external 

stakeholders helps in reaching informed decisions about the 

content, scope, and limits of post-2015 development agenda 

responsibilities. Corporate management thereby becomes 

familiar with the multiple demands of different stakeholders. 

Managers are challenged by values, concerns, views of the 

world, and perceptions of corporate obligations, which can 

differ substantially from their own. But this learning experience 

– as challenging as it may sometimes be – enhances the 

social competence of corporate management. Such dialogues 

are, in the best of all worlds, a two-way street: Civil society 

stakeholders also have the opportunity to learn about the 

mindset of management and about the ways that managers 

make decisions on the basis of business fundamentals, and 

hence these stakeholders can better assess where there are limits 

and nonnegotiable essentials for profit-oriented corporations. 

Prof. Dr. Klaus Leisinger is President of 

the Foundation Global Values Alliance 

(www.globalewerteallianz.ch); Professor 

of Business Ethics and Corporate Responsibility 

at the University of Basel; Special 

Advisor on the Post-2015 Development 

Agenda and Business Ethics of the 

UN Global Compact; and member of the 

Leadership Council of the Sustainable 

Development Solutions Network. 


MEASURING SDGs 

While indicators have been developed and used in reporting progress toward 

the MDGs, the approach to upcoming SDGs must be systematically developed. 

24 


Agenda 

Measuring SDGs 


GOING BEYOND GDP – 

MEASURING 

SOCIAL PROGRESS 

By Julia Vol 

Agreement is emerging between politicians, social actors, and businesses worldwide – 

that economic growth alone cannot provide an accurate indication of prosperity. Relying 

on economic growth as the sole measurement for social progress provides an incomplete 

picture. But there is a new measurement that attempts to provide a better understanding 

of the components of a successful society and social order. 

Traditional measurements such as gross domestic product 

(GDP) measure only how much money is generated within the 

system, but GDP does not measure the social, environmental, 

or long-term economic costs of generating these gains. Purely 

economic measurements also fail to represent how the money 

within the system is distributed, how it is used, and who gets 

to enjoy it. All of these factors must be taken into account 

when assessing social progress, equality, and quality of life 

throughout societies and countries. 

None of the economic “bads” such as pollution and child 

labor are included in any GDP measurement. Absurdly 

enough, war spending and costs for the recovery from natural 

disasters have a positive effect within the GDP matrix, while 

obviously having a negative impact on the quality of living 

of the people affected. In addition, economic growth without 

social progress does not translate into greater well-being 

and stability. On the contrary, it might actually contribute 

to growing social gaps and discontent, which can eventually 

threaten the entire system. Accounting for all the factors 

above, we cannot allow business as usual and the use of GDP 

as an acceptable measurement for progress and well-being. 

Over the past years, there have been many attempts to come 

up with new, more holistic indicators to replace or supplement 

the problematic use of traditional GDP. Measurements 

such as gross domestic income, the GINI coefficient, and the 

Human Development Index have been offered as alternatives, 

but they are often criticized for leaving out important 

components such as ecological considerations, or for being 

socially, culturally, or contextually biased. 

Alternative measures 

To respond to this criticism, the Social Progress Imperative 

was founded in 2012. A beta version of their first research 

product was published a year later: the Social Progress Index 

(SPI). In April 2014, the first official SPI was introduced, which 

gathered and compared information from 132 countries 

around the world. The Social Progress Imperative Foundation 

26 


Agenda 


was created in cooperation with academia, global corporations, 

and civil society organizations. Chaired by Professor 

Michael Porter (the creator of the Shared Value concept), and 

with partners such as Deloitte and the Skoll Foundation, the 

organization established a new groundbreaking measurement, 

which incorporates 54 indicators that address many 

of the flaws of the previous measurements. It provides the 

most holistic and accurate representation of reality so far. 

The Social Progress Index aims to meet the growing need for a 

well-being measurement that addresses the issues mentioned 

above and provides a useful tool for governments, societies, 

and businesses to obtain a better understanding of a country’s 

performance, highlight challenges, and catalyze action. 

The authors of the report define social progress as “the capacity 

of a society to meet the basic human needs of its citizens, establish 

the building blocks that allow citizens and communities 

to enhance and sustain the quality of their lives, and create 

the conditions for all individuals to reach their full potential.” 

The remarkably innovative feature of the index, which distinguishes 

it from previous metrics, is that it does not take 

economic factors into consideration. It measures results 

rather than “intentions” – spending and investments. The 

index consist of 54 indicators, which are broken down into 

three main categories – basic human rights, foundation of 

well-being, and opportunity. It attempts to account for the 

features that answer the question: What does a successful 

country look like? 

Breaking down the matrix into 54 indicators helps to highlight 

the positive and negative factors within the overall 

score. They will assist in the discussion on national and 

social priorities, which should be addressed in efforts toward 

improvement, as well as help in generating tangible results. 

(Un)usual results 

At first glance, the SPI scores put the “usual suspects” at the 

top – the countries that are known for the high quality of 

their living standards, such as New Zealand, Switzerland, and 

the Scandinavian countries – whereas sub-Saharan states are 

at the bottom. However, when looking closer and reading into 

the indicators, interesting facts are revealed. 

Switzerland, which is ranked second overall, scores only 12th 

place in the “Opportunity” measurements, with its lowest 

score referring to “Tolerance and Inclusion.” Although Iceland 

placed third overall, the country does not lead in any of the 

54 individual dimensions. 

And even though Western and developed countries perform 

very high on wealth and social well-being indicators, their 

scores on ecosystem sustainability are rather poor – Canada 

and Australia are in 46th and 47th place, respectively. 

Such insights help to point out the specific issues that should 

be addressed by governments, society, and business in a 

much more accurate way than has been offered by previous 

measurements. 


Comparing the scores of the SPI to the GDP per capita data 

of countries proves that the rate of economic growth often 

does not reflect well-being and prosperity. Iceland and New 

Zealand top the SPI but have much lower GDPs per capita and 

are ranked 14th and 30th, respectively. Meanwhile, Russia and 

Croatia, with similar GDP rates, score very differently on the 

SPI. Croatia is positioned 36th , whereas Russia ranks 80th and 

exhibits very different social conditions. Such results draw a 

clear picture of how economic growth is not nearly sufficient 

to represent quality of life or point out social shortcomings. 

The publication of the Social Progress Index this past April 

has already led to furor and headlines worldwide, sparking a 

debate and generating a wide range of reactions. In the United 

States, the index findings have reignited the sensitive public 

debate over the country’s healthcare system. Although the 

overall rank of the United States is 16th place, the health and 

wellness score places it 70th – despite having the highest 

expenditure per capita in the world on healthcare. 

Paraguay, Costa Rica, Brazil, Trinidad, and Tobago already 

announced that they will be using the Social Progress Index 

as a foundation for creating their own sub-national index to 

measure progress and well-being. The goal is to provide a holistic 

framework for key stakeholders such as government, aid 

agencies, businesses, and civil society to identify current social 

needs and be able to track and measure progress for change. 

In the short time since its release, the SPI has enjoyed increased 

attention and interest worldwide. The innovative value of the 

SPI is its ability to reflect the actual state of well-being in a 

country rather than looking at economic ability to achieve 

certain aspects of well-being. This positions the SPI as a possible 

alternative or supplement to the problematic GDP measurement. 

It is hoped that this measurement will contribute toward a 

better understanding of the quality of decision-making in the 

future, facilitate a better utilization of resources, and improve 

the ability to monitor change. 

Julia Vol holds an MA in Environment 

and Natural Resources and works as 

a sustainability and CSR consultant 

for businesses and organizations in 

the Nordic region. In her professional 

career, she has worked for Deloitte 

Denmark, the University of Iceland, and 

the World Watch Institute, among other 

organizations. 

28 


Agenda 


OVERVIEW: ECONOMIC AND WEALTH INDICATORS 

Gross domestic product (GDP) has been used for decades as the most important indicator of economic performance and 

prosperity. But the concept of GDP is increasingly coming under fire. Are we measuring completely irrelevant numbers? 

Robert F. Kennedy wisely stated that GDP “measures everything except that which is worthwhile.” So which economic and 

wealth indicators do we have? Which are sustainable? 

Gross Domestic Product 

GDP measures the total value of all goods and services 

produced by a nation during the year. Many criticize its use 

because it does not distinguish whether money is spent on 

meaningful or meaningless items. Thus, the exploitation of 

resources, environmental damage, and even war and destruction 

appear in the statistics as supposed sources for increased 

wealth. On the other hand, the informal sector and subsistence 

farming are not measured, for example, though they are 

critical for a large number of poor people around the world. 

Gross National Product 

GNP is the total income earned by the population of a country 

in a given period. However, GNP tells us nothing about the 

unequal distribution of wealth or income distribution in a 

society, for example. 

Per Capita Income 

Per capita income is derived from dividing national income 

by the population in a given period. For international comparisons, 

per capita income is converted, often using the US 

dollar. However, the different purchasing powers of different 

currencies are considered to be insufficient. 

Human Development Index 

The HDI has been published since 1990 by the United Nations 

Development Programme. In addition to GDP, it also 

takes into account life expectancy, literacy, and enrollment 

rates. From this holistic perspective, one comes to surprising 

results. China, for instance, is the second-largest economy 

in the world after the United States, in terms of GDP, but in 

the Human Development Index, the country ranks only 92. 

In 2010 the Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index 

(IHDI) was introduced. The IHDI can be viewed as an index of 

“potential” human development if there were no inequality. 

Index of Sustainable Economic Welfare and the 

Genuine Progress Indicator 

The ISEW also considers aspects such as income distribution; 

unpaid domestic work; public spending on health and 

education; pollution; resource consumption; and the costs of 

climate change. ISEW was developed further into the Genuine 

Progress Indicator. 

Happy Planet Index 

The Happy Planet Index combines values for life satisfaction, 

life expectancy, and the size of ecological footprints. Developed 

by the New Economics Foundation, in collaboration with 

Friends of the Earth UK, in July 2006, the index is weighted 

to give progressively higher scores to nations with smaller 

ecological footprints. In 2012 the best-scoring country for the 

second time in a row was Costa Rica, followed by Vietnam 

and Colombia. 

Economic Diversification Index 

The Economic Diversification Index shows the structural economic 

weaknesses of a country. It is composed of the share of 

manufacturing sectors in the GDP, the number of employees 

in the industry, electricity consumption per capita, and export 

concentration as a measure of the dependence of a country 

on the export of goods or commodities. 

Big Mac Index 

The Big Mac index is a simple indicator of the purchasing 

power of a currency. It is used because Big Macs are sold 

almost everywhere in the world and have a standardized size, 

composition, and quality. The idea was to make exchange-rate 

theory a bit more digestible. 

Gini Coefficient 

The Gini coefficient, or Gini index, is a statistical measure 

developed for the representation of unequal distributions. 

The Gini coefficient takes a value between 0 for uniform distribution 

and 1 at maximum inequality. The Gini coefficient 

was proposed by Corrado Gini as a measure of inequality of 

income or wealth. 

Nationaler Wohlfahrtsindex (NWI) 

The NWI is based on the assumption that private consumption 

– the consumption of goods and services by households 

– contributes to the welfare of the people. Therefore, extra 

income for a poor household offers more benefits than extra 

income for a rich household. Thus, the more unequal the 

income distribution of a society, the lower the NWI. 

Compilation: Editorial Team 


SUSTAINABLE INNOVATION MANAGEMENT: 

TEN LESSONS FROM 

INNOVATION STUDIES FOR A 

SUSTAINABLE PARADIGM 

Sustainability goals, such as those associated with the the post-2015 development agenda of 

the United Nations, have to be translated into new commercial products and services as well 

as different ways of making and delivering them that replace less-sustainable alternatives. 

This is the role for firms intending to profit from innovation while meeting sustainable goals. 

Sometimes these innovators are small entrepreneurial firms that see sustainable products 

as an ideal niche in which to start a new business venture. Sometimes these innovators are 

large firms that have identified opportunities where customers and / or technologies are new. 

Successful innovation at the firm level contributes cumulatively to industrial structural 

change in a process known as “creative destruction.” Through this process, a new paradigm 

can emerge, within which sustainable economic growth flourishes in an inclusive manner 

consistent with the goals of the United Nations post-2015 agenda. 

By Dr. Paul Dewick and Jonathan Aylen 

The direction and pace of this creative destruction process is 

difficult to foresee. What history tells us is that we can expect a 

wide range of novel products, new production techniques, and 

imaginative services to be offered to the consumer. Given these 

broad choices, the market acts as a selection mechanism – some 

alternatives will be picked and some neglected. Competitors will 

watch what succeeds and adapt their offerings accordingly. It is 

precisely from this sort of lively variety, selection environment, 

and serendipity that the winning outcomes emerge that will 

contribute to a preferred (and potentially more sustainable) 

paradigm. In the following 10 lessons, we consider briefly the 

role of innovation dynamics in facilitating a sustainable paradigm 

consistent with the post-2015 agenda of the United Nations. The 

list is not exhaustive, but it signposts some of the challenges and 

opportunities for sustainable innovation management. 

1. A sustainable paradigm is more likely if sustainable innovation 

yields a profit. This is not necessarily difficult. Green 

goods open new markets. Sustainable raw materials can reduce 

costs. Diversification to novel, sustainable sources can spread 

risk. Developing markets for recycled products such as plastics 

or beverage cans, paper, or compost encourages both collection 

by households and processing by emerging firms confident 

of their supplies. For example, the Holmen Paper of Sweden 

sends fresh newsprint to the United Kingdom and Germany by 

sea. The same vessels return with waste paper and travel direct 

to the mill, where it is used as feedstock alongside pulp from 

timber. Reversing the supply chain in this way allows them to 

diversify their raw materials supply and cut production costs. 

The challenge for firms is to stimulate creative ideas and to 

champion and support the ideas through to implementation. 

30 


Agenda 


2. Necessary technologies often evolve together. Innovation 

needs to be managed at the component and systems levels. 

Carbon capture is straightforward for many industrial processes, 

such as oxygen steelmaking. Yet, implementation of carbon 

capture and storage (CCS) is anything but straightforward, 

requiring, for example, the development of networks, both 

physical (e.g., systems of pipes, storage sites) and contractual 

(e.g., between steel producers and infrastructure owners), as 

well as supportive institutions (e.g., regulation, local planning). 

The challenge here is to coordinate individual innovations at 

different levels into a sustainable architecture. Organizations 

emerge nationally and regionally to support coordination, often 

supported by government. For example, the Chinese Ministry 

of Science and Technology takes a lead role in China’s CCS 

development, including initiating CCS research and development 

activities, funding, and approving CCS demonstration 

projects. In the United States, the Department of Energy’s 

network of seven Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships 

heads-up national efforts to develop the infrastructure and 

knowledge base of CCS. In Europe a similar role is played by 

the European CCS Demonstration Project Network. The Global 

Carbon Capture and Storage Institute, based in Australia, connects 

organizations internationally. 

3. Technological trajectories will guide the direction of progress, 

but trajectories will vary. Global problems often need 

local solutions. Technologies prosper in localities depending 

on sociocultural-political characteristics and access to different 

sorts of capital (e.g., natural, financial, human). For example, 

biomass potentially provides a basis for an alternative (more 

sustainable) system of production and distribution for (bio-) 

fuel and (bio-)material products. There are many alternative 

biomass feedstocks and associated production and processing 

technologies that lock in systems of production and distribution. 

Contrast the evolving trajectories associated with sugar 

cane-to-ethanol production in Brazil with the cellulosic ethanol 

production in the United States. Going forward as sustainable 

land-use patterns are developed that balance demands for 

fuel, food, ecosystem services, and carbon sequestration, we 

can expect opportunities for different trajectories to emerge 

around alternative inputs to the bio-economy. 

4. Innovation is not just about technological change. Business 

model innovation is important, too, and there is increasing 

adoption among small entrepreneurial and large multinational 

firms of alternative business models that support a 

value proposition aligned with sustainable goals. For example, 

Delphis Eco, a UK-based startup, was conceived with a business 

model applying “creative capitalism” to the consumption 

and production of ecological cleaning products. At the other 

end of the size spectrum, well-known examples – including 

Unilever’s “Sustainable Living Plan” and Marks and Spencer’s 

“Plan A” – demonstrate how sustainability goals can be embedded 

into the core business processes of large firms. More 

recently, the B-Team was established by a group of high-profile 

business leaders with the aim of catalyzing “a better way of 

doing business for the wellbeing of people and the planet”; 

an opportunity consistent with the UN post-2015 agenda. 

5. Although it often lags behind technological change, institutional 

innovation is always necessary to support technoeconomic 

changes. Indeed, the co-evolution of technologies and 

institutions shape the pace of progress. Institutions vary greatly 

across countries, and their influence on innovation processes 

is complex, but basically there are two types of institutional 

innovation: formal changes such as new rules, laws, and constitutions; 

and informal changes such as new sociocultural norms 

of behavior, conventions, and self-imposed codes of conduct. 

Government often plays the role of institutional entrepreneur 

with respect to sustainable innovation, shaping the environment 

in which novel ideas will prosper and diffuse. Opportunities 

include funding basic R&D to acquire knowledge of the options; 

standard-setting to help designs develop and markets flourish; 

subsidizing capital investment otherwise handicapped by small 


scale; public procurement (brokering markets); assisting job 

creation; education and training in novel skills; and investing 

in national infrastructures to support new breakthroughs. One 

needs only to look at how government has engaged in the above 

initiatives to support the adoption and diffusion of information 

and communication technologies, which are often thought of 

as being the last paradigmatic change. 

6. But one can expect resistance to innovation. For example, 

companies handling fossil fuels have the benefit of experience, 

economies of scale, and many years of learning on their side. 

Vested interests bolster the status quo. Escaping this kind of 

lock-in requires knowledge of the alternatives, strong institutional 

support, and the flair of entrepreneurship. For renewable 

sources of energy, it seems the risks and costs are all on the 

side of innovation. But doing nothing is often the biggest risk 

and can create the highest cost of all. The headline argument 

of the Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change (2006), 

for example, was that the benefits of responding earlier to 

climate change far outweighed the costs. Subsequent studies 

have supported this position, and yet, systemic inertia means 

that climate change remains an intractable problem. 

7. Scale matters. Efficiency gains can be offset by increased 

production; environmental impacts must be considered in 

absolute rather than relative terms. Admittedly, new ideas 

often start small. Green innovations may prosper in protected 

niches. The cumulative effect of “grassroots” innovation may 

be considerable. But, scalable solutions are required to achieve 

paradigmatic change. Herein lies an opportunity for what some 

call “focal” organizations, which can leverage change and 

stimulate sustainable innovation beyond their organizational 

boundaries with both upstream suppliers and downstream 

customers. The identities of focal organizations differ across 

global value chains, but they are often the preserve of large 

branded manufacturers and retailers. For example, consider 

the initiatives of the US retailer Walmart, which has worked 

collaboratively with its diverse supply base, notably through 

the Sustainability Consortium, to stimulate sustainable innovation 

across product categories. 

machining without cutting fluid anticipated a reduction in 

the cost of soluble oils, an improved work environment, and 

cleaner swarf for recycling. Machining without lubricant had 

the unforeseen benefit of cleaner work pieces, which also 

reduced contamination in downstream processing. 

10. “Challenge prizes” have a long history that illustrates how 

competition can spur innovation. For example, the “Longitude 

Act” of 1714 was an attempt by the British government to stimulate 

innovation to address one of the greatest challenges of that 

time. Through an Act of Parliament, 20,000 GBP (more than 

2 million GBP today) was offered for a solution to determine 

accurately a ship’s position at sea “for the safety and quickness 

of voyages, the preservation of ships, and the lives of men…” 

The winner was clockmaker John Harrison and his marine 

chronometer. In 2014 the Longitude Prize has been reconceived 

with a greater public involvement and a prize of 10 million 

GBP to support solutions to one of today’s most pressing social 

and environmental issues. The shortlist for the prize resonates 

with the United Nations post-2015 agenda. 

In conclusion, the emergence of a more sustainable paradigm 

is unlikely to happen by chance: Intention matters for “creative 

destruction.” The post-2015 development agenda of the United 

Nations sets out goals that firms can translate intentionally 

into new products, services, and processes by engaging in and 

with technological, organizational, and institutional innovation. 

Studies of innovation provide us with a dynamic lens 

through which we can understand better – and respond more 

confidently to – the challenges and opportunities associated 

with meeting these goals. 

8./9. Innovation is risky. Foresight tools and techniques can 

reduce uncertainties associated with making investments in 

new technologies and markets. Roadmapping of new products 

and processes spells out the resources required to make things 

happen and anticipates bottlenecks. Plausible scenarios for 

future development help firms and policymakers “buy in” to 

a change of direction. Consensus can be built through broad 

consultations structured as Delphi exercises. In this way, 

foresight methods can reduce risk and are often the stimulus 

of innovation. Even so, given the uncertainty of innovation, 

events do not always materialize as planned, and serendipity 

plays a role, sometimes contributing to more sustainable 

outcomes. For example, a foresight exercise focusing on clean 

Dr. Paul Dewick is an economist 

and Lecturer at the Manchester 

Institute of Innovation Research 

in Manchester Business School, 

University of Manchester. 

Dewick’s research and 

teaching focus on the role of 

innovation in responding to the 

challenges and opportunities of 

sustainable development. 

Jonathan Aylen is 

Senior Lecturer at the 

Manchester Institute of 

Innovation Research in 

Manchester Business School, 

University of Manchester. 

Aylen has enjoyed 

a varied career as economist, 

engineer, and innovation 

researcher. 

32 


Agenda 


A BIG DATA REVOLUTION FOR 

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT 

The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s High Level Panel has called for a “data revolution” 

for sustainable development; such a revolution has already arrived in the private sector. 

But forward-thinking companies can now lead a revolution in corporate social responsibility 

(CSR) to help us address some of the world’s most pressing issues. 

By Robert Kirkpatrick 

When thinking of engagement with the private sector, the 

global development community has tended principally to 

concentrate on volunteer time and donated goods and services, 

as the Overseas Development Institute has highlighted. 

But there is much more we can learn from the private sector 

about reducing vulnerability and using real-time insights to 

boost resilience, mitigate risk, and respond to changing global 

circumstances with greater agility. 

The UN is in the process of updating its roadmap and agreeing 

upon Sustainable Development Goals to see us through to 

2030. With this comes the unique opportunity to future-proof 

the process by using methods that may seem cutting-edge 

now, but will be considered anything but in a few short years. 

The truth is that the data revolution that has been underway 

in the private sector for more than a decade. Citizens today – 

in both developing economies and industrialized ones – are 

generating a growing ocean of digital data, every minute of 

every day, just by going about their daily lives. As we use 

mobile devices to communicate, buy and sell goods, transfer 

money, search for information on the internet, and share our 

lives publicly on social networks, we leave digital trails that 

private-sector firms are mining to understand the needs of 

their customers, track emerging market trends, and monitor 

their own operations in real-time. 

In healthcare, in the auto industry, and even in entertainment 

markets, this real-time (and occasionally predictive) intelligence 

has fundamentally altered how companies serve their 

customers, leading to the emergence of new business models. 

This is good news for those seeking to harness big data for 

social good. The development community is not starting from 

scratch, but rather seeking to adapt innovative tools and 

methods to our own needs and learning how to stay ahead 

of the curve in a fast-changing world. 

Big data for development: 

A new mode of public-private collaboration 

The Global Pulse initiative is a big data innovation lab for the 

United Nations. We see that in analyzing big data, there is potential 

to generate a real-time understanding of human well-being. 

Since our inception in 2009, we have been researching, innovating, 

and advocating around many of the principal challenges 


“ 

The development community cannot 

tackle global 21st century problems using 

20th century techniques. 

related to transforming digital data into better outcomes for the 

poor, discovering new approaches, building tools, and working 

to demonstrate ways to overcome barriers to adoption and scale. 

In time this practice will be seen as a “no brainer” for the 

development community: using mobile data to gain insight 

into urban dynamics to improve transport infrastructure in 

Sao Paulo or Abidjan; understanding how perceptions spread 

via social media in order to tailor HIV prevention campaigns; 

correlating dengue epidemics with data on holiday travel patterns 

to ramp up prevention strategies; or planning where to set 

up support services based on granular mapping of the routes 

that communities previously displaced by earthquakes used. 

But unlike in the private sector, this is not a case of crunching 

your own numbers or using your own sales data to identify 

trends. A great deal of the most insightful real-time digital 

data is held by private-sector companies. The public sector, 

therefore, cannot fully exploit big data without leadership 

from and partnerships with the private sector. What we need 

is action that goes beyond corporate social responsibility. We 

need big data to be treated as a public good. 

“Data philanthropy” is already happening 

This is not just blue-skies thinking – there are companies 

doing this already. The Global Pulse network of partners and 

collaborators includes forward-thinking private-sector companies 

willing to engage in data philanthropy. They do this by 

granting access to data and technology tools to the public sector, 

as well as industry leaders, universities, research institutes, 

and nonprofit networks of researchers and innovators who 

are ready to utilize their skills and expertise to advance the 

use of data science across global development and humanitarian 

fields. This type of collaboration has already enabled big 

data innovation projects across the UN system with agencies 

including the World Health Organization, the United Nations 

Development Programme, the World Food Programme, the 

United Nations Children’s Fund, the Joint United Nations 

Programme on HIV and AIDS, and many others. 

” 

Of course, protecting individual privacy is paramount when 

analyzing data types of passively generated data, including 

social data, mobile phone data, internet search data, consumer 

behavior sales data, and more. Putting in place mechanisms to 

protect privacy based on shared guidelines, regulations, and 

technology will help build frameworks in which data can be 

safely and ethically analyzed for insights that can be used to 

help protect populations. The private and public sectors must 

come together to develop these frameworks. 

Benefits for the private sector too 

The “Post-2015 Data Revolution” will require much more of 

this type of collaboration between the public and private sectors 

for social good, and there are many different modalities of 

working together. In some cases, companies interrogate their 

own data, using their own data scientists for information on 

trends that can be used to gain intelligence to solve development 

and humanitarian problems. 

This experience can also prove to be a positive one for the 

corporate data scientists. Data scientists are in short supply; 

they come from a generation of millennials for whom ethical 

behavior and good corporate CSR are extremely important. By 

allowing these talented young men and women some latitude 

to use their skills to make the world a better place, companies 

can boost job satisfaction and retention. 

Data philanthropy is also good for business. Take, for example, 

any given mobile phone company operating in a fragile economy 

– they have an interest in customers’ general well-being and 

also in regional economic health. Huge spikes in food prices, 

displacement by floods and earthquakes, or a fast-moving disease 

epidemic all represent risks to the phone operator’s customer base. 

In this case and many others, sharing data with the public sector 

can help NGOs, foundations, and UN agencies in mitigating risk 

of harm and boosting resilience – that is good for everybody. 

Ultimately, we envision a world in which the private sector 

routinely contributes to a real-time data commons, where 

34 


Agenda 


information on citizens’ well-being could be aggregated and 

shared, as with weather data. Yet, we recognize that companies 

will only participate on their own terms, and doing so must 

also make good business sense. 

The development community cannot tackle global 21st century 

problems using 20th century techniques. We must find a way 

for different types of real-time data to be shared and analyzed 

in ways that do not compromise market competitiveness, and 

that fully protect privacy in the process. 

It will take courage, imagination, new regulatory frameworks, 

innovative policies, and fresh thinking about how public- and 

private-sector partnerships can be structured – but we must 

bring about this new reality. 

Robert Kirkpatrick 

is the director of UN Global Pulse, an 

initiative of the Executive Office of the 

United Nations Secretary-General. 

The Global Pulse initiative explores 

how digital data sources and realtime 

analytics technologies can help 

policymakers understand human wellbeing 

and emerging vulnerabilities. 

UNITED NATIONS LOOKS TO SCIENTISTS USING 

BIG DATA TO HELP TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE 

An innovative competition 

aimed at stimulating the use 

of big data to highlight the 

impacts of climate change 

has received an overwhelming 

response from the global 

scientific community, prompting 

organizers of the “Big Data Climate Challenge” to announce 

extension of the submission deadline to June 30. 

The Big Data Climate Challenge brings together the fields of Big 

Data and climate change for the first time in a global competition. 

It is being hosted by United Nations Global Pulse in support of 

the Secretary-General’s Climate Summit on September 23, 2014, 

at UN Headquarters in New York, just before the UN General 

Assembly. 

Winners of the Challenge will get the opportunity to showcase 

their projects at the Climate Summit, which will be attended 

by heads of state, CEOs of major corporations, and civil society 

organizations from around the world. 

The Big Data Climate Challenge seeks published or implemented 

projects that use Big Data to show the real-world impacts of 

climate change, revealing both the economic implications of 

climate impact and opportunities to manage climate risks. 

Multidisciplinary initiatives from all relevant fields may apply, 

including but not limited to energy, smart cities, transportation, 

agriculture and food systems, recycling, material sciences, risk 

management, architecture and design, finance, and carbon markets. 

A global Advisory Board of high-profile experts in climate 

science, data, and sustainable development will help evaluate 

submissions. The Board includes advisors from Skoll Global, 

African Development Bank, Indian Institute of Science, MIT 

Senseable Cities Lab, and World Meteorological Organization. 

Additional advisors from UN agencies including World Food 

Programme, UN Environment Programme, and UN Population 

Fund will provide further technical support. 

“We’re confident that data-driven climate solutions exist around 

the globe — we just have to find them. And the Big Data Climate 

Challenge seeks to unearth and highlight the best examples out 

there,” says UN Global Pulse Chief Scientist Dr. Miguel Luengo- 

Oroz. “The impressive submissions that the Challenge has already 

received demonstrate both the relevance and importance of 

bringing the Big Data and climate communities together.” 

The Big Data Climate Challenge represents an opportunity for 

scientists and researchers to share their work on an international 

stage, engaging world leaders, climate experts, and the general 

public to strengthen global resilience and drive climate action. 


OPERATIONALIZING SUSTAINABILITY TARGETS: 

AN INTRODUCTION TO 

THE SUSTAINABLE VALUE 

APPROACH 

By Prof. Dr. Frank Figge, Dr. Tobias Hahn, Dr. Ralf Barkemeyer, and Dr. Andrea Liesen 

Over the last decades, sustainability has been accepted by 

policymakers and corporate managers alike as a relevant 

and legitimate goal. In this context, the current UN-level efforts 

to formulate sustainable development goals (SDGs) can 

be expected to further consolidate the sustainability agenda 

and to help relevant actors address today’s key global sustainability 

challenges. From a corporate perspective, a universally 

acknowledged set of SDGs will provide valuable pointers 

regarding areas that need to be prioritized within the wide 

range of sustainability-related aspects. However, in order to 

translate these high-level SDGs into organizational practice, 

corporate decision-makers require tools for operationalizing 

sustainability performance and sustainability targets. 

Corporate decision-making tools are dominated by a financial 

logic today. The Sustainable Value Approach presented here 

offers a tool that extends the currently dominant value-based 

management logic to the assessment of the use of economic, 

environmental, and social resources. In this way, it offers corporate 

decision-makers a tool to translate and operationalize 

sustainability performance and targets into monetary terms 

based on a logic that is widely used and understood in companies 

today. We briefly explain the logic and the application of 

the Sustainable Value Approach, illustrate it with a practical 

example from the car industry, and discuss its explanatory power. 

Measuring and managing sustainability performance 

The Sustainable Value Approach allows for measuring and 

managing corporate sustainability performance on the basis 

of quantifiable sustainability metrics. It does so in a way 

that companies are used to – it focuses on value creation. 

According to the logic of the approach, a company creates 

sustainable value when it generates more returns with a 

given set of environmental, social, and economic resources 

than a benchmark. Depending on the angle of the analysis, 

this benchmark can be an industry average or a breakdown 

of SDGs to corporate reduction targets. 

The Sustainable Value Approach is based on a fundamental 

principle of financial economics: Companies create value 

whenever they use economic resources more efficiently than a 

benchmark. In the financial market, this valuation methodology 

has long been practiced under the banner of “opportunity 

costs.” From a sustainability perspective, the valuation of a company’s 

performance cannot be limited to the use of economic 

resources, but must also take into account environmental and 

social resources. Interestingly, prior to the Sustainable Value 

Approach, no other method had attempted to assess the use of 

environmental and social resources based on opportunity costs, 

even though this had already been suggested 120 years ago. 

The example illustrated in Figure 1 can explain the underlying 

opportunity-cost logic of the Sustainable Value Approach. Let 

us assume an investment, such as a share, produces an annual 

return of 8 percent. To assess this performance, we need to 

compare it with a benchmark – generally, the market average 

– that defines the opportunity cost, that is, the forgone 

return of the investment. Assuming that the market (e.g., the 

DAX) has only produced an annual return of 5 percent, the 

investment has achieved an additional return of 3 percent, 

also known as the value spread. To determine how much 

value has been generated, this value spread is multiplied by 

the capital employed. Assuming an investment of € 100, the 

value contribution comes to € 3 (see Figure 1). 

36 


Agenda 


Investment Benchmark Company Benchmark 

Return 8 % 5 % CO 2 

-efficiency € 10 per t € 6 per t 

Value spread 3 % Value spread € 4 per t 

Capital employed € 100 Quantity emitted 10 t 

Value contribution € 3 Value contribution € 40 

Figure 1 : Value-oriented analysis of resource use 

The Sustainable Value Approach extends this logic to the use 

of environmental and social resources. To calculate sustainable 

value, a company’s resource-efficiency is compared with that 

of the benchmark. A company that emits 10 tons (t) of CO 2 

to 

generate a return of € 100 has a CO 2 

efficiency of € 10 per ton 

of CO 2 

. If the benchmark only generates a € 6 return per ton 

of CO 2 

, for example, the company earns a return of € 4 more 

per ton of CO 2 

than the benchmark. With a total emission of 

10 tons of CO 2 

, a company therefore generates value of € 40. 

To achieve a more sustainable economy, environmental, social, 

and economic resources should be used where they create 

the highest value. Using the Sustainable Value Approach, it 

can be determined where the use of which resources creates 

the highest value. 

Calculating sustainable value 

Sustainable value is calculated in five steps. Each step provides 

the answer to a specific question that is relevant for the assessment 

of a company’s sustainable performance. 

(1) How efficiently does a company use its resources? 

(2) How efficiently does the benchmark use the resources? 

(3) Does the company use its resources more efficiently than 

the benchmark? 

(4) Which resources are used by the company in a valuecreating 

way? 

(5) How much sustainable value does a company create? 

To show one possible application of the Sustainable Value 

Approach, we illustrate these five steps using the example of 

the sustainability performance of the BMW Group in 2010 

and the automobile sector as a benchmark. 

Step 1: How efficiently does a company use its resources? 

The purpose of the first step is to establish how efficiently 

the company uses its various economic, environmental, and 

social resources. To this end, the quantity of resources used is 

compared with the return generated by the company. In our 

example, the earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) is used 

as a return figure and divided by the quantity of resources used. 

In 2010 the BMW Group, for example, generated an EBIT of 

€ 4,017 per ton of CO 2 

emissions emitted. The CO 2 

efficiency 

of the BMW Group in 2010 therefore came to € 4,017 / t CO 2 

. 

The use of return figures other than EBIT that cover a broader 

economic contribution, such as gross value added, is possible. 

Step 2: How efficiently does the benchmark use the resources? 

The second step of the analysis calculates how efficiently the 

benchmark uses the relevant economic, environmental, and 

social resources. First of all, the benchmark has to be defined. 

In our example, we use the global automobile industry as the 

benchmark when assessing the sustainability performance of 

BMW. More specifically, we use the weighted average efficiency 

of the use of resources by all automobile manufacturers studied. 

The average EBIT that the carmakers earn per unit of resource 

used is then calculated for all resources considered. The CO 2 

efficiency of the automobile industry in 2010 came to € 1,052 

EBIT / t CO 2 

. The use of benchmarks other than industry averages, 

for example political targets, are possible. 

Step 3: Does the company use its resources more efficiently than 

the benchmark? 

This step compares the efficiency of the company with the 

efficiency of the benchmark. To this end, the benchmark 

efficiency is deducted from the company efficiency. The 

resulting value spread describes how much more (or less) 

return per unit of resource the company produces compared 

with the benchmark. The value spread is calculated for each 

resource examined. This establishes whether the company 

uses the various resources more efficiently than the bench- 


mark. For our example, the comparison of the CO 2 

efficiency 

of the BMW Group with the rest of the industry shows that 

the BMW Group uses this resource more efficiently. It has a 

positive value spread of roughly € 2,965 / t CO 2 

. In other words, 

the BMW Group generates € 2,965 more EBIT per ton of CO 2 

than the industry average (see Figure 2). 

Car 

2010 BMW manufacturing 

sector 

CO 2 

-efficiency 

[EBIT / t of CO 2 

-emissions] 

€ 4,017 per t € 1,052 per t 

Value spread 

[EBIT / t of CO 2 

-emissions] 

Quantity emitted 

Value contribution 

€ 2,965 per t 

1,267,989 t 

€ 3,759 bn 

Figure 2 : Calculation of the value contribution from 

BMW Group CO 2 

emissions in 2010 

Step 4: Which resources are used by the company in a value-creating 

way? 

The value spread calculated in the previous step identifies how 

much more (or less) return per unit of resource consumed the 

company makes compared to the benchmark. In this fourth 

step, the value contribution generated by the entire resource 

use within the company is calculated. To this end, the relevant 

quantity of resources used is multiplied with the appropriate 

value spread. The result shows how much more or less of a 

return the company creates with the quantity of resources 

used compared with the benchmark. In 2010, for example, the 

BMW Group emitted 1,267,989 tons of CO 2 

. Having calculated 

the value spreads in step three, we know that the BMW Group 

creates roughly € 2,965 more EBIT per ton than the industry 

average. If we multiply the value spread with the total quantity 

of CO 2 

emitted, the resulting value contribution comes to approximately 

€ 3.8 billion. This represents how much more of 

a return the BMW Group generated with its CO 2 

emissions as 

compared to the average manufacturer (see Figure 2). 

Step 5: How much sustainable value does a company create? 

In the previous step, the value contribution of each resource 

was established. In this last step, we now determine how much 

value is being created in using the entire bundle of economic, 

environmental, and social resources. In previous steps, BMW’s 

entire EBIT was attributed to the use of a single resource. 

Obviously, this does not reflect the real situation, since the 

return is only produced once, through the use of the entire 

resource bundle. Simply adding up the value contributions 

from the different resources would incorrectly count the EBIT 

of the firm more than once. When calculating the sustainable 

value, the sum of the value contributions is thus divided by 

the number of resources considered. Figure 3 illustrates the 

five calculation steps. It also shows that the BMW Group 

generated a sustainable value of roughly € 3.6 billion in 2010. 

The sustainable value expresses how much more of a return 

BMW has created with the bundle of resources in question in 

2010, as compared to other industry peers. 

Making allowances for company size 

In financial analysis, larger companies are generally expected 

to generate higher profits, sales, and cash flows. The same 

problem arises when attempting to compare the sustainable 

value of different companies: Bigger companies generally use 

greater quantities of resources and therefore tend to create 

more (positive or negative) sustainable value. As with the 

financial analysis method, allowances for the company’s size 

therefore need to be made when comparing the sustainable 

value of different companies. 

Financial analysis compares performance parameters, such as 

profit or cash flow, with other indicators that reflect the size 

of the company. Profit, for example, is frequently assessed 

in relation to capital employed or sales. Following this logic, 

sustainable value can be related to other figures that represent 

the size of the company, such as sales (sustainable value 

margin) or the opportunity cost of resource use (return-to-cost 

ratio) to give an indication of sustainability performance that 

does not depend on company size. 

Explanatory power 

In our example using BMW, we can see that the company 

used every one of the analyzed economic, environmental, and 

social resources more efficiently than the benchmark, with 

sulfur oxide emissions being used the most efficiently and total 

assets the least efficiently. For other automobile companies 

that formed part of the analysis, sustainable value provides 

an indication of which economic, environmental, and social 

resources are used in a value-creating way, and which are not. 

The approach can thus pinpoint companies toward strengths 

and weaknesses in their sustainability performance. It can also 

be used to benchmark future investments or projects against a 

company’s current sustainability performance or sustainability 

targets in order to identify those projects and investments that 

have the most positive effect on sustainability performance. 

In summary, the Sustainable Value Approach provides a 

monetary measure of how efficiently an individual company 

does business compared with a benchmark. The results, 

38 


Agenda 


Amount of Efficiency of Efficiency of Value 

resources used BMW Group car sector contribution 

3 

1 2 4 

Total assets 108,867,000,000 * 

CO 2 

-emissions 1,267,989 t * 

NO x 

-emissions 457 t * 

SO x 

-emissions 8 t * 

VOC-emissions 2,047 t * 

Waste generated 131,742 t * 

( 4.68 % - 4.08 % ) = € 651,555,392 

( € 4,017 per t - € 1,052 per t ) = € 3,759,450,938 

( € 11,146,608 per t - € 2,037,052 per t ) = € 4,163,067,423 

( € 636,750,000 per t - € 4,492,355 per t ) = € 5,058,061,163 

( € 2,488,520 per t - € 285,611 per t ) = € 4,509,354,993 

( € 38,666 per t - € 5,646 per t ) = € 4,350,153,318 

Water use 3,205,191 m 3 * ( € 1,589 per m3 - € 186 per m 3 ) = € 4,497,254,400 

Work accidents 1,045 * 

Employees 95,453 * 

( € 4,874,641 per nb - € 2,728,297 per nb ) = € 2,242,929,349 

( € 53,367 per nb - € 23,327 per nb ) = € 2,867,382,018 

Figure 3 : Sustainable value of the BMW Group in 2010 

5 

€ 3,566,578,777 

however, do not indicate whether the benchmark – in our 

example, the automobile industry on average – as a whole 

makes a contribution to the sustainable use of resources 

and promotes sustainable development. Although methodologically 

possible, our example of BMW does not deal with 

aspects outside the company. The calculation of sustainable 

value therefore does not take into consideration factors such 

as the performance of suppliers or product features. Also, 

applications of the Sustainable Value Approach are limited 

to sustainability aspects that can be reasonably quantified. 

In the context of the SDGs, a range of corporate impacts on 

global sustainability challenges can be quantified, measured, 

and managed directly at the level of the company. For 

example, many companies are already reporting on their 

greenhouse gas performance, water use, or waste generation. 

However, in other cases, it is more challenging to attribute 

global problems such as poverty or complex ecosystem services 

to the level of one individual actor, in turn making 

it more difficult for companies to manage and report their 

impacts in a meaningful way. While the formulation of 

SDGs is highly appreciated and a clear step forward in this 

context, additional guidance will be needed for companies 

on how to translate these macro-level goals and targets to 

the company level. 

Furthermore, it should be noted that sustainable value does 

not attempt to express a company’s entire commitment to 

sustainability in a single ratio. Qualitative sustainability 

aspects, many of which are covered by SDGs, should also 

be managed with qualitative instruments. For those sustainability 

aspects that can be quantified, the Sustainable 

Value Approach provides a link between sustainability and 

the value-oriented logic that is common in management 

practice. Therefore, the biggest advantage of the Sustainable 

Value Approach is that it allows for the use of environmental 

and social resources to be assessed in the same way as the 

use of economic resources – and expresses the results in 

a single monetary figure. The Sustainable Value Approach 

is therefore a powerful tool for measuring and managing 

corporate sustainability performance, as it expresses sustainability 

performance in the language and logic of mainstream 

management. 

Prof. Dr. Frank Figge and Dr. Tobias Hahn are both professors 

of Sustainable Development and Corporate Social Responsibility 

at KEDGE Business School, France. Both have been early developers 

of the Sustainable Value approach. 

Dr. Ralf Barkemeyer (University of Leeds, UK) and Dr. Andrea Liesen 

(Umea University, Sweden) joined the Sustainable Value team to 

further develop the approach into a tool for strategic and operative 

sustainability management. 



Time is short. Climate change is not a far-off problem. 

It is happening now with heavy costs today and even 

more tomorrow. But there is a sense that change is in 

the air. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has invited 

world leaders to the Climate Summit on September 23. 

But it is also about individual behavior. It is time to act 

and it is up to us. 

40 


Agenda 



A PATHWAY 

TOWARD 

CARBON 

NEUTRALITY 

Interview with Ms. Christiana Figueres, 

Executive Secretary of the UN Framework 

Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 

Dear Ms. Figueres, you are from Costa Rica. People there typically use 

the term “Pura Vida” (pure life) as an expression of optimism. How 

much does the Pura Vida attitude help you when you sometimes find 

yourself in frustrating political negotiations? 

Christiana Figueres: Well, at this point during the World Cup, 

we Costa Ricans are particularly optimistic. But the fact is that it 

is an optimistic country that is always in the market for miracles. 

We are actually quite risk-friendly, which is probably why Costa 

Rica has served as a model for other countries, in particular 

on climate change policy and on payments for environmental 

services – two items that were piloted in Costa Rica and are 

now being used in many other countries. But my optimism is not 

just because of my wonderful country; it is also because, from 

my vantage point, I see so much progress on climate policy. I 

see 500 climate change laws around the world. I see investment 

in renewable energy technologies and the scaling-up of energy 

efficiency. I see the cost of renewable-energy technologies going 

down. So I see many different factors that are leading both to 

an increased number of policy measures and also to an increase 

in possibilities for being able to effectively implement those 

policies, reduce emissions, and increase resilience. 

The chances of limiting global temperature increases to 2 degrees 

Celsius during this century are diminishing. Experts such as Hans 

Joachim Schellnhuber, from the Potsdam Institute, are warning that 

we are rapidly approaching irreversible tipping points. How much 

time is left for a political solution? 

Figueres: We are rapidly approaching very, very dangerous 

zones, so one should not be rosily optimistic nor irresponsible 

about the decisions that we have to make. But the Intergovernmental 

Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessment report 

is very clear in establishing the pathway that we need to follow 

in order to keep temperature increases below 2 degrees 

Celsius. That pathway points out very clearly that we must 

reach global peak emissions within the next 6 to 10 years. We 

must achieve global carbon neutrality in the second half of 

the century. The IPCC warns us that the deadline for making 

this change is actually very soon. But we still a have chance 

to do it. That is why the Lima draft agreement and the Paris 

Agreement are so critical. 

In the latest report from the IPCC, Chris Field, from the Carnegie 

Institution for Science, said that he sees progress. But the progress 

42 


Agenda 


described has not been in mitigating carbon emissions but rather in 

adapting to the effects of global warming. Is this the new realpolitik 

of the United Nations? 

Figueres: The reason why adaptation is now commanding much 

more attention – as it should – is because global greenhouse 

gas emissions continue to rise, and there is a direct relationship 

between the two. The more that greenhouse gas emissions 

rise, the more adaptation is going to become necessary, and 

vice versa. The quicker we can lower the levels of greenhouse 

gas emissions, the less adaptation required in the long run. 

The two of them go hand in hand. As the two fundamental 

pillars of action under the climate change convention, both 

are now very much at the center of attention – for finance as 

well as for technological support – for developing countries. 

Climate science is so complex that it cannot be easily communicated 

to the general public. When you look ahead to the upcoming United 

Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 21) in 2015 in Paris, what 

would be your desired outcome, and what is your expected outcome? 

Figueres: The Paris outcome needs to have several components. 

First, there needs to be an agreement that maximizes the possibilities 

for collaboration between all countries to reverse the 

trend of rising greenhouse gas emissions. Second, there has to 

be clarity as to what the initial contributions are going toward. 

Third, a pathway toward carbon neutrality by the second half 

of the century needs to be clarified and made visible in that 

agreement. Fourth, there needs to be a confirmation that the 

finance and technology that developing countries in particular 

are going to need for transformation will be on the table. There 

also needs to be confirmation that much of the infrastructure 

that is needed to support developing countries has already 

been built, and the financing for that also needs to be on the 

table by the start of the Paris conference. 

the international level – it is a win-win opportunity that this 

challenge affords us, and that is being recognized increasingly 

by more countries. 

Talking about waking up: China and the United States are the biggest 

carbon emitters in the world. In the past, they did not contribute much 

to the debates. But now the Obama administration and the Chinese 

government have both given signals about more ambitious programs. 

Is this a game changer? 

Figueres: China and United States are increasingly stepping up 

to the challenge because they understand that it is better for 

their own economies, for completely different factors: China 

for health reason and maintaining a competitive economy in 

a low-carbon world; the United States for energy security and 

for increased energy-efficiency levels. What is interesting is 

that, in addition to what they are doing on the national level, 

they are also actively collaborating on certain issues and are 

beginning to see that they can actually work together better 

if they do it in a collaborative manner. A couple of examples 

on that are their joined efforts on HFCs (hydrofluorocarbons), 

more research into the development of carbon capture and 

storage (CCS) technologies, and more efforts regarding energy 

efficiency, particularly in the building sector. So there are a 

host of sectors where they are exchanging information and 

supporting each other. 

For years politics have been a barrier to climate talks. Most governments 

pay lip service to the goal of keeping climate change within tolerable 

limits, but then we see them weakening their earlier commitments, as 

with Australia and Japan, for example. 

Figueres: I actually see increased political will from most 

countries, in part because countries are reading and studying. 

They now understand the IPCC assessment report and are really 

coming to grips with the urgency of the matter. More and 

more countries are realizing that they not only need to do it 

when viewing it from a global perspective; they also realize 

that the measures they take for global climate reasons have 

significant positive national impacts as well. They must do 

it to improve health conditions, create cleaner air, improve 

transportation, improve access to energy, and create more 

reliable and secure sources of energy. There is a fortunate 

coincidence here between pursuing sustainable development 

at the national level and addressing global climate change at 


The growing level of global carbon emissions is due to our lifestyles. 

Industrialized countries are unwilling to abandon their materialintensive 

and wasteful lifestyles, whereas emerging economies are 

intent on avoiding any mandatory commitments that could block 

their chances of copying the Western consumerist model. It is the same 

dilemma that the Club of Rome described in “The Limits of Growth” 

four decades ago. It seems that mankind is not learning as fast as is 

needed. Or is it? 

Figueres: The challenge and opportunity we face is the transformation 

of the growth paradigm that we have followed 

over the past 100 to 150 years. Our growth has been based 

on burning fossil fuels, but today we know that this can no 

longer be an option. Therefore, we need to try and transform 

the growth paradigm that we have used in the past. We need 

a new paradigm for the next decades – in particular for 

developing countries – that allows for sustainable growth 

and also helps in eradicating poverty and providing for the 

well-being of all citizens. But that growth must be low-carbon 

and high-resilience growth, which is not the model that has 

been used for the past 150 years. So we are looking for a 

new growth model and we are beginning to see it emerge 

in some countries. 

Let us talk about instruments to mitigate and adapt to climate change. 

The discussion always highlights a global carbon market with an 

emissions trading scheme as being a good instrument. Can you briefly 

explain to our readers the current state of discussions? 

Figueres: There are several components to this. The established 

markets are in developed countries under the Kyoto Protocol. 

Those markets are admittedly suffering from a lack of demand. 

When you do not have demand, then supply is irrelevant. But 

I am confident that as soon as we have a global agreement, 

the role of the markets will be recognized. Established global 

market mechanisms such as the Clean Development Mechanism 

and the European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme 

contrast remarkably with the growth of markets in other 

jurisdictions. At the end of June, China launched its seventh 

regional-based market. China is experimenting with seven 

pilot projects with a view toward entering a national carbon 

market within the next few years. 

The same can be said for about 12 to 16 other countries, all of 

which are experimenting with carbon pricing or carbon markets 

as potentially effective tools for reducing greenhouse gas 

emissions. What we see is a mushrooming of markets around 

the world that are speaking to the very specific national circumstances 

of particular jurisdictions. They are increasingly 

exchanging information among themselves and see a future 

for these markets in which they receive funding, and perhaps 

are linked to each other. So there is a lot of work under way in 

these markets, but it still remains to be seen where all these 

activities are leading. 

Another instrument brought into the discussion during your time as 

Executive Secretary is the Green Climate Fund (GCF). The idea is to 

have at least $10 billion available for climate projects in developing 

countries. Will the fund be launched? 

Figueres: The Green Climate Fund has actually been launched, 

in the sense that all the designs and decisions have been decided 

upon by the board in order to have an operating entity ready. 

What we are looking at now – particularly for September 

for the Climate Summit called by UN Secretary-General Ban 

Ki-moon – is the beginning of the capitalization phase of the 

GCF. That is not going to occur in one day, but with capitalization, 

the Green Climate Fund could begin to operate. 

What time frame do you have in mind? 

Figueres: That is not clear yet. The expectation is that some 

announcement will come in September. But whether it is 6 

or 12 months is still unclear. 

Recently, Ecuador asked for financial support to protect its biodiversity 

and its rain forests. The global community declined to help. So how 

realistic are REDD + (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and 

Forest Degradation in Developing Countries) programs in light of this 

response to Ecuador? 

Figueres: The Ecuadorian project was a proposal that Ecuador 

would be compensated for not extracting the oil that is underneath 

Yasuni Park. That did not yield as much as Ecuadorians 

had hoped, although it was a very interesting proposal. The 

financial instruments put together to finance REDD+ activities 

are fundamentally different in nature – they do not deal 

with the non-extraction of oil but rather with the protection of 

the forest cover. Different sources put out different numbers, 

but I think it is safe to say that somewhere between $2 and 

$3 billion has been committed to the developing countries 

that are working on their programs and plans to protect the 

forest cover. The climate convention has established a very 

rigid procedure and methodology to account for the tons of 

carbon that are protected by law. So with methodological 

and environmental integrity and vigor on one side, and with 

funding on the other side, there is a very good potential for 

developing countries to contribute toward the fight against 

climate change through the protection of forest cover. 

Working on climate protection is not only a duty for governments but 

for all of us. What do you want from businesses? What kind of initiatives, 

commitments, and solutions would you like to see from them? 

Figueres: Business sectors can do a couple of things. First, they 

can help to increase energy efficiency to a maximum. Second, 

there is the challenge of what kinds of products and services 

are offered by these companies. They can move toward lowercarbon 

products and services if they want to be at the forefront 

44 


Agenda 


of this new industrial revolution. Third, many companies lobby 

directly or are members of associations that lobby politically. It 

is the responsibility of these companies to examine which of 

their own lobbying policies or those of their associations are 

constructive. Many times, a company is actually moving in the 

right direction toward low-carbon activities, but sometimes 

they are members of associations that are lobbying against the 

advance of climate policies. Fourth, companies can be even more 

vocal. They need to hold conversations with the governments in 

the countries in which they operate about government policy 

in order to plan investments for the long term. Whether it be 

the price of carbon or any type of public policy, regulatory 

certainty and predictability are something the companies need. 

A supporting voice comes from the UN Global Compact. How could the 

Global Compact contribute? What could and should it do? 

Figueres: The Global Compact has already been very helpful, 

in particular from the climate perspective, in particular regarding 

the companies that form the Caring for Climate Initiative 

(C4C), which has raised its voice about the corporate benefits of 

climate regulation. At the same time, I challenge everyone to 

do more. I do not think companies at the forefront are doing 

as much as they can to support the governments’ efforts to 

regulate carbon emissions within their own national boundaries. 

They need to contribute to the constructive conversations 

concerning the global regulatory framework. 

Dear Ms. Figueres, thank you very much! 

The interview was realized by Dr. Elmer Lenzen. 


ALIGNING FLOWS OF 

CAPITAL WITH TACKLING 


The Carbon Tracker Initiative (CTI) was set up a few years ago to investigate 

what levels of future carbon emissions were being financed. By comparing 

the stocks of carbon in the form of coal, oil, and gas in the ground with 

carbon budgets that equate to degrees of warming, we have demonstrated 

the huge overhang of carbon in our energy system – what we refer to as 

“unburnable carbon.” 

By James Leaton 

This approach has proved valuable in being able to link together 

the worlds of the environment, energy, and finance 

sectors. As a result, the implications of having an excess of 

fossil fuel resources and infrastructure are being addressed 

by a wide range of institutions, including the International 

Energy Agency, the World Bank, the Organisation for Economic 

Co-operation and Development, and the United Nations Framework 

Convention on Climate Change, as well as coalitions 

and individual companies in the energy and finance sectors. 

Behind all of this is a desire to facilitate the energy transition. 

We know that we will not be able to deliver a low-carbon 

46 


Agenda 


future without having the capital to pay for it. Unless we 

have a financial system that is able to address climate risk, 

this is unlikely to happen. It is clear that the past will not 

be repeated, due to both the changing climate and a changing 

energy system. We therefore need a financial system 

that can deal with sectors that do not just repeat historical 

performance. 

CTI’s macro-level analysis has made it clear that there is a 

journey we need to take. Everyone needs to refocus on the 

ultimate destination in terms of cumulative emissions. Our 

discussions have made it clear that this journey will not affect 

everyone equally – impacts will vary from region to 

region and depend on which fossil fuels are used. Investors 

will want to know who the winners and losers are going to 

be along the way, and how long it is going to take to get to 

the different stages. 

It is essential that analysts be willing to challenge their assumptions 

in order to entertain this alternative scenario. The 

fundamentals of demand and price need to be reconsidered. 

In order to stay within a certain carbon budget, it is clear 

that the demand for carbon-intensive fuels will have to fall. 

This may then have price impacts on those commodities. 

Depending on the time horizon, this will affect the future 

revenues of companies selling those products, which feeds 

into valuations and credit ratings. 

This has already started to happen in some markets, with the 

US coal sector offering a prime example. Due to cheap gas 

as well as air quality standards, the US domestic market for 

coal has declined. The largest coal-producing companies lost 

half of their value in the first six months of 2012, with credit 

downgrades following. As a result, some of those companies 

are looking to enter other markets – leading to oversupply 

in the seaborne coal market – whereas others are filing for 

bankruptcy. 

Some analysts are starting to wake up to the fact that China’s 

coal consumption may peak in the next couple of years. 

China has proven very effective at meeting the targets set 

in its five-year plans, and improving air quality and reducing 

carbon intensity are high on the political agenda. This 

is now the base case-scenario for some analysts – that the 

coal market is in structural decline. This makes the economics 

of new export mines very challenging, as they will 

not provide a return on investment if demand and prices 

collapse. Challenging assumptions is critical – using last 

year’s coal price and demand to predict future revenues 

may no longer be valid. 

It is worth noting that we are not framing these developments 

as a global deal or carbon price, or as pure climate regulation. 

There are a range of market factors at work – items labeled 

“climate regulation” are just one element. What is clear is 

that there are a growing number of factors that are acting to 

constrain high-carbon activities; as this continues, alternatives 

will become cheaper. However, it may be something 

as fundamental as adjusting the economic growth rate for 

China, which is as significant as a specific carbon policy for 

reducing demand. 

CTI has tried to frame its analysis in ways that fit with the 

market view. Our latest research – a carbon-supply cost curve 

for the oil sector – shows that the world’s expensive oil may 

not be needed over the next few decades if we are serious 

about reducing emissions. Our analysis shows how high-cost 

oil projects are surplus-to-demand and will require that high 

oil prices be maintained to deliver returns. 

It is also clear that different companies have varying degrees 

of exposure to the high end of the cost curve. The entire 

business model of some oil companies is betting on high oil 

prices to justify technically challenging, high-risk, high-cost 

projects such as ultra-deepwater, oil sands, and Arctic developments. 

This is where shareholders need to be more active in 

challenging the capital expenditure plans of the companies 

to ensure that they are focusing on shareholder value, rather 

than the endless pursuit of oil volume. 

CTI believes it is better to be prepared for the energy transition 

than to wake up to a sudden shock. Many industries 

have gone through changes, and not all have survived. Most 

recently, we saw the CEO of a European utility acknowledge 

that his company invested in renewables too late. If the energy 

sector does not take this on board, then we will be left with 

more stranded assets that are no longer economical to run. 

The world of energy is moving fast, and the operating environment 

of 2020 and beyond is likely to look very different 

from yesterday’s markets. That is why CTI is getting investors, 

governments, and boards to think about how the capital 

investment decisions made today will play out in a future 

where there is a lower demand for fossil fuels than in the 

business-as-usual scenarios that many are banking on. 

James Leaton is Research Director at 

the Carbon Tracker Initiative, and is 

lead author of the Unburnable Carbon 

series of reports. He is responsible 

for developing the research program 

and engaging with the investment 

community. 


REDUCING CARBON EMISSIONS 

IN EVERYDAY LIFE 

When it comes to protecting the climate, the focus is usually on business and industry. 

Less well-known is the fact that more than half of the total annual carbon footprint per 

person (11 tons) is the direct or indirect product of private households. 

By Dr. Nicola Schuldt-Baumgart and Dr. Immanuel Stieß 

Successful climate protection is often linked to technological 

innovation. Research has shown, however, that everyday 

behavior also plays a crucial role in carbon emissions. To 

this end, researchers on the “KlimaAlltag” project, led by the 

Institute for Social-Ecological Research (ISOE) in Frankfurt 

am Main, examined how to change everyday routines and 

encourage climate-friendly lifestyles. 

“More than half of those surveyed were basically ready to 

make changes in their behavior,” stresses project leader 

Immanuel Stieß. This means more potential to protect the 

climate, without any sacrifice in quality of life. “Indeed, 

with moderate changes to everyday habits, for example by 

choosing green energy, buying seasonal and regional food, 

and using buses and trains more often, we could cut down 

on CO 2 

by 10 to 15 percent,” says Stieß. 

Most CO 2 

emissions come from everyday activities 

A substantial portion of CO 2 

emissions are created from the 

daily necessities of private households. With some 15 percent 

of total direct emissions, private households are currently 

the third-largest source of global emissions: Only the energy 

and transportation industries emit more. If we add in the 

activities required to manufacture and dispose of goods and 

services used inside the home, the emissions percentage from 

private households rises even further. 

In addition to consumption, the areas of heating and energy (25 

percent), mobility (23 percent), and food (14 percent) contribute 

significantly to the total. Mobility examples that are especially 

CO 2 

-intensive include the number of long-distance trips taken, 

necessary flights, the distances driven in automobiles, and the 

48 


Agenda 


An overview of climate personality types 

How much influence do different lifestyles and social strata 

have on everyday climate sensitivities? The KlimaAlltag research 

team developed a system for distinguishing nine different 

climate types on the basis of empirical surveys. The spectrum 

of behavior ranges from comprehensively climate-friendly to 

consistently climate-harmful. 

Type 1: Comprehensively 

climate-friendly 

fuel consumption of cars. Where diet is concerned, the consumption 

of meat is a considerable factor, and the purchase 

of organic foods reduces the carbon footprint substantially. 

Climate protection is not a question of income 

The ISOE research team has identified nine distinct “climate 

types”: “The biggest surprise to us was the high percentage of 

climate-conscious actors who had below-average incomes,” notes 

Stieß. “Contrary to the frequently formulated assumption that 

protecting the climate is only for higher earners, we were able to 

observe that it is precisely those people who have to be careful 

about money who have a lower carbon footprint.” People from 

more elevated social strata had a stronger awareness of climate 

issues on the whole, as well as higher incomes that allowed them 

to purchase organic products or more energy-efficient household 

appliances. People with comparatively smaller household 

incomes improved their carbon footprint by neither owning their 

own cars, traveling by air, nor engaging in mass consumption. 

Communities and citizens – Partners in protecting the 

climate 

This behaviorist look at climate types puts the focus on the 

motives and morals of individuals. It is a way of developing 

a more personalized climate policy. At the municipal level, 

for example, local authorities can encourage climate-friendly 

behavior through an ample variety of measures, for example 

supporting renters, homeowners, and low-income households. 

Energy Food Mobility 

The “comprehensively climate-friendly” group comprises 

21 percent of those surveyed, with women being a majority 

in this group. The level of education in this group is higher 

than average, but incomes are only average. Some 40 percent 

of those surveyed for this climate type reported having to 

be frugal about their finances. The group has a pronounced 

climate awareness, a strong orientation toward health, and 

is well-informed about the effects of their own consumption 

on the climate. Climate-friendly behavior is comparatively 

pronounced in all three spheres of action. These actors exhibit 

the smallest carbon footprint of all climate types. 

Type 2: Selectively climate-friendly 

in the energy sphere 

Members of this group (12 percent of those surveyed) have 

a slightly above-average level of education and incomes that 

are distinctly above the comparison groups. On the whole, the 

group has high climate-awareness and is rather well-informed 

about climate-friendly daily routines. This group is especially 

climate-friendly in its use of energy. Energy-saving routines 

such as switching devices off from standby mode are implemented 

consistently. Half of the actors are consumers of green 

energy. The striking aspect of members of this group is that 

they spend an above-average amount of time traveling, so 

more improvements are possible in the mobility field. 


in the food sphere 

When it comes to the subject of food, this group (4 percent of 

those surveyed) is already engaging in conscious and climatefriendly 

behavior every day. For example, they buy an aboveaverage 

amount of regional, seasonal, and organic foods. The 

overwhelming majority of them eat vegetarian several days 

a week. People in this climate type usually belong to higher 

social strata: Those surveyed have the highest incomes of all 

groups and have more advanced degrees than the average. 

About half of them own their own homes. Women tend to 


e overrepresented in this group, whereas those under 30 are 

underrepresented. But their mobility habits have a strong effect 

on the climate: This climate type uses a car far more than 

the average. Anyone wishing to change this will encounter 

strong resistance. 


in the mobility sphere 

About 10 percent of those surveyed fall under this climate type. 

The social demographics of this group are markedly distinct 

from the other types: People from the lower and middle social 

classes are strongly and disproportionately represented. Their 

incomes are substantially lower than average. Many of them 

are unemployed or pensioners. Most of them live alone. Those 

surveyed considered their own opportunities for action to be 

strongly limited by their restrictive financial circumstances. 

About one out of every two people in this group reported 

that they had to live frugally. The members of this group are 

very climate-friendly in their mobility behavior. The primary 

reason for this is their rare use of automobiles; many have 

no car of their own. 

Type 5: Moderately climate-friendly 

The “moderately climate-friendly” group comprises 16 percent 

of those surveyed. People with more advanced degrees are 

slightly overrepresented in this group. Incomes are somewhat 

higher than average, and households of three or more 

people are slightly overrepresented. Members of this group 

are basically open to improving their daily routines regarding 

climate. An above-average number of those surveyed 

were prepared to buy seasonal fruits and vegetables more 

often. This group also found purchasing energy-efficient 

appliances to be an attractive option for reducing their own 

carbon footprints. 

Type 6: Selectively climate-harmful 

in the energy sphere 

This group includes a markedly above-average number of 

women over 60 years of age, as well as single-person households. 

Incomes are substantially higher than average, as 

are homeownership and size of home. On the whole, their 

climate awareness and concomitant knowledge of climate 

protection is rather weak, with status concerns predominating 

instead, along with a need for exclusivity and comfort. 

This group was generally rather critical of local climateprotection 

measures. Many rejected efficient energy use and 

energy conservation in their own behavior, considering it 

too involved. This group is the most likely to be willing to 

buy energy-efficient appliances. 


in the food sphere 

This group has the lowest average age and the highest percentage 

of individuals under 30. Overrepresented in this 

group are men and people with migration backgrounds, less 

advanced degrees, or low incomes. They have comparatively 

little knowledge of the effects of their food choices on the 

climate. Many do not know how to make choices that would 

be less harmful to the climate. Characteristic of the members 

of this group is a meat-intensive diet that is strongly anchored 

in the idea that “meat is just the right thing to eat.” These 

individuals are the most likely to be willing to alter their own 

50 


Agenda 


The research project 

household behaviors as far as energy and home appliance use 

are concerned. They are also willing to take short-distance 

public transport more often, whereas they are relatively likely 

to reject more climate-friendly diets (e.g., less meat, more 

organic products). 

The KlimaAlltag project is led by the ISOE. Partners include 

the Verbraucherzentrale Nordrhein-Westfalen, the Institute for 

Ecological Economic Research, and the University of Graz. In 

the first half of the project, the research team carried out a field 

study in Cologne in which more than 80 households committed 

to reduce CO 2 

emissions from their everyday activities. Members 

of the households received advice from climate consultants from 

the VZ NRW for six months. The course and results of the field 

study were carried out and evaluated under scientific supervision. 

The possibilities and effectiveness of municipal climate 

protection measures were examined through a representative 

survey of 1,000 interviews in Frankfurt am Main and Munich. 

The project, which ended in December 2013, was funded by the 

German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. 


in the mobility sphere 

More on this subject can be found at: 

The KlimaAlltag Project: www.klima-alltag.de 

This group has a comparatively high average age. Women 

and pensioners are strongly represented. This group is wellsituated 

economically: They frequently own their own homes, 

home size is large, and incomes are good. But the level of 

education is below the average. The pronounced harm to 

the climate comes from their above-average use of their 

own cars: People in this group travel more than 10,000 km 

per year in their own vehicles. One fundamental reason for 

their frequent car use has to do with their living situations: 

Their distance from the closest bus stop is markedly higher 

than that of other groups. Accordingly, their willingness to 

curtail car use is low. 

Type 9: Comprehensively 

climate-harmful 

Two-thirds of those in this group are men. The median age of 

30 to 39 years is strongly overrepresented, as are people with 

migration backgrounds and / or lower-level degrees. Only a 

few of them own their own homes, and larger households are 

overrepresented. These groups place a priority on exclusivity 

and fun. The motivation to do something to protect the climate 

is at its lowest in this group. The willingness to do something 

to change this is very low. 

Dr. Nicola Schuldt-Baumgart is 

head of Knowledge Communication 

& Public Relations at the 

German ISOE – Institute 

for Social-Ecological Research – 

one of the leading independent 

institutes engaged in sustainability 

research in Germany. 

Dr. Immanuel Stieß 

is senior researcher 

and head of the research 

unit Energy and Climate 

Protection in Everyday Life 

at the German ISOE – 

Institute for Social-Ecological 

Research. 


PRIMARY ENERGY 

CONSUMPTION 

United Nations define primary energy consumption as the direct use at the source, or supply 

to users without transformation, of crude energy, that is, energy that has not been subjected 

to any conversion or transformation process. Over the past decade the global energy consumption 

of primary energy has grown by 30 %. Most of that growth has come from outside OECD 

countries. In the next two decades the global demand will continue with China and India as 

two new mayor consumers. The importance of renewables energies will grow, too. But due to 

the uninhibited demand the fossile energy sources petroleum, coal, and natural gas will still 

be the principal energy sources. 

2011 

Hydraulic 

Power 

1,6 % 

Renewable 

Energies 

6,4 % 

Natural Gas 

24 % 

General Consumption: 

12,274,6 Mtoe 

Petroleum 

33 % 

Uranium 

5 % 

Coal 

30 % 

Primary energy consumption by energy source in 2011. 

Source: IEA 

52 


Agenda 


United States 

2,240 

Brazil 

480 

Europe 

1,710 

Africa 

1,030 

Eurasia 

1,370 

Middle 

East 

1,050 

India 

1,540 

China 

4,060 

Southeast 

Asia 

1,000 

Japan 

440 

Primary energy consumption by region in 2035 in tons of oil equivalent. 

2035 

Hydraulic 

Power 

3 % 

Renewable Energies 

16 % 

Petroleum 

28 % 

General Consumption: 

16,748,6 Mtoe 

Natural Gas 

22 % 

Uranium 

8 % 

Coal 

23 % 

Primary energy consumption by energy source in 2035. 

Source: IEA 


“THE GERMAN ENERGIEWENDE – 

OUR CONTRIBUTION TO A 

SUSTAINABLE ENERGY SYSTEM” 

By Sigmar Gabriel 

People around the world are observing the progress being 

made by Germany on its energy reforms (known as the “Energiewende”), 

which are no less than a complete overhaul of 

its energy supply system, entailing the phase-out of nuclear 

energy, a reduced reliance on fossil fuels, the promotion of 

energy efficiency, and the establishment of renewable energies 

as the main sources of energy. The reforms will make 

our country less dependent on fossil fuel imports, are key in 

allowing Germany to make an appropriate contribution to 

combating climate change, and will stimulate new growth in 

sectors that offer significant potential for new jobs. Ultimately, 

the Energiewende will be a true success if other countries embark 

on a similar path of decarbonizing their energy supplies. 

This is why the dialogue with our neighbors in Europe and our 

partner countries internationally is of greatest importance to us. 

Transforming our energy system is a challenging task. 

Germany’s electricity system has always boasted one of the 

highest security-of-supply standards worldwide. German 

households and companies rarely – if ever – experience a 

blackout. It is crucial to maintain this high standard, since it 

forms the backbone of our success as a society that generates 

its prosperity to a great extent through developing, producing, 

and exporting high-quality goods. The cost of electricity 

has recently been rising due to the funding of renewables. 

We need to stabilize the energy costs for households and 

industry in order to maintain the general acceptance of 

the Energiewende and the competitiveness of our economy. 

I believe that it is our obligation as an industrialized country 

to protect our manufacturing base, and at the same time 

decarbonize our energy system. 

The good news for other industrialized countries is that they 

can embark on their own energy reforms at a time when a 

mature global renewable-energy industry is already in place. 

Germany and other first-movers are financing the learning 

curves for solar and wind technology. In the first phase of 

the energy reforms between 2000 and today, the average 

level of funding for all renewable-energy technologies was 

about € 17 cents / kWh. This support has boosted the share 

of renewables in electricity production from 6 percent in 

2000 to 25 percent in 2013. Now that we are entering a 

second phase, in which renewable energies will become the 

“leading systems” within the power supply, renewables have 

to – and can – compete with conventional generators. In 

2015, the average funding level for renewables will fall to 

around € 12 cents / kWh and will be further reduced over the 

coming years. It is a great achievement that we have seen 

the costs for renewables such as photovoltaics coming down 

in a much shorter time period than expected. 

In my capacity as Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, 

I have proposed binding corridors for the expansion of 

renewables, in which the support levels will be adjusted 

54 


Agenda 

Climate Energy Debate Change 

according to the additions of the previous year. This will 

guarantee a steady reduction in costs and allow us to better 

plan the necessary adjustments in the grid and in the market 

design to complement renewables. By doing this, Germany is 

stressing its commitment to the transition toward renewable 

energies and to achieving our targets of 40 to 45 percent of 

electricity production by 2025 and 55 to 60 percent by 2035, 

while simultaneously enhancing cost-efficiency. 

Nevertheless, the transition to renewables creates new 

challenges. Synchronizing power supply and demand is 

becoming more complicated due to the volatile nature of 

renewables. We need to find a new market design that fits 

the requirements of an energy system with a greater variety 

of technologies and market participants. In the long run, we 

also need to find ways to store electricity efficiently. In this 

process, we want to cooperate with other countries in order 

to find the most effective solutions soon. 

What can other industrialized countries learn from the first 

phase of the German Energiewende? The key aspect of the 

successful establishment of a renewable-energy industry in 

Germany was the long-term investment security, which our 

feed-in tariff system provided to facilitate the market launch. 

With investment security in place, new entrepreneurs and 

established companies will innovate and bring down costs. 

A second key aspect is to push for innovation by exposing 

renewables gradually to market conditions and to provide 

incentives for the integration with conventional generation. 

Engaging citizens in determining the energy pathway for 

the future is a third key requirement: It was only possible 

to providing a sound political and regulatory framework 

for the integration of renewables because the German 

people strongly support the energy reforms. We believe 

that the renewables industry will be one of the growth 

industries of the future. The sector has already created 

around 380,000 jobs in Germany, and the potential to 

scale product development and production is great. Thinkers 

such as Jeremy Rifkin believe that renewable energies 

– in concert with modern information technologies – 

will trigger the next industrial revolution. It is my belief that 

the German Energiewende can indeed serve as a model for 

other industrialized countries, showing them how to prepare 

their economies for the coming era of sustainable growth. 

Sigmar Gabriel is Vice-Chancellor of the German government and 

Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy. 


HOW HIGH IS SUSTAINABILITY 

ON THE 

EUROPEAN POLICY AGENDA? 

Faced with economies still struggling to make ends meet, the European Union’s take on sustainability 

relies heavily on fundamental industry makeovers for signs of economic recovery. 

By Elena Mocanu 

European policy has a long, detailed record of policy measures 

to support discussions on required standards to be applied 

by the business sector. Most measures have been focused on 

resource efficiency and its implementation, with the ultimate 

goal being to boost productivity and reduce input use (energy, 

water, materials) for a given level of economic output, which 

would incorporate environmental sustainability into the 

economic growth agenda once and for all. Europe’s policymakers 

seem to be testing the ground for the hypothesis that 

businesses are falling short in tapping its resource-efficiency 

potential, which some studies claim have a savings potential 

of billions of euros for European industry. 

56 


Agenda 


Europe 2020 Strategy at work 

The Europe 2020 Strategy may be seen as the main pillar in 

policymaking supporting Europe’s shift toward a sustainable 

economy – it is the to-do list of resource efficiency and offers 

competitiveness in the global arena. At the time of the 2020 

Strategy’s adoption in 2011, the EU attempted to put forward 

green economy development measures against the backdrop 

of financial turmoil and insecurity in the business sector. 

Policymakers are putting a stamp on criteria for competitiveness, 

requiring that businesses increase their use of renewable 

energies, reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, enhance their 

resource efficiency, and promote innovation. This comes as no 

surprise, given the fact that Europe is the largest importer of 

raw materials and sources of non-renewable energy. 

The latest policy developments in this area suggest an increased 

focus on sustainability as the driver for innovation 

in the European region, as shown by the 7th Environment 

Action Program (January 2014), which clearly lists resourceefficiency 

management as a priority. Being challenged as it is 

by other regional players regarding manufacturing and extraction 

volumes, Europe’s winning card could be its favorable 

climate toward innovation due to its tradition of research 

and development and producing a well-educated labor force. 

Complementing its roadmap to resource efficiency – which 

basically maps Europe’s challenges in its efforts to decouple 

growth from the extensive use of resources – the European 

Commission has announced its drafting of a communication 

on the Circular Economy in 2014. The goal is not to replace 

the concept of resource efficiency with a more sophisticated 

one, but rather to highlight a transformative growth model 

that would radically change both producer and consumer patterns 

by eliminating waste. The continual flow of resources 

in the production cycle – as opposed to what is called for 

in current economic models – would require tremendous 

innovation efforts to restructure the value-chain systems so 

as to accommodate a no-waste principle. 

Sustainability-driven innovations 

Resource efficiency improvements can be compared to a firsttier 

change of business operations, for example replacing old 

equipment to save more energy or finding innovative ways 

to use less water and fewer materials and create less landfill, 

etc. These are incremental changes most experts would call 

“picking the low-hanging fruit” because, as the idiom implies, 

there is little work required to do it, investments are relatively 

low-cost, and returns on investment are achieved in a short time. 

The circular economy model of business, however, is a different 

matter altogether: It builds upon first-tier changes in 

the company but implies a complete makeover. Not only will 

the business change its operations, but it will also change its 

entire methodology and processes in order to come up with 

something novel, all while assessing its suppliers, employees, 

and entire organization to accommodate this makeover. Arguing 

for this business case involves taking a long-term perspective 

on return on investment. Success stories in this area have one 

thing in common: the ambition to take measures in the present 

to position the business as an industry leader in the future. 

The European Commission is as busy as ever surveying small 

and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) around Europe, checking 

for policy impacts on companies’ strategies toward resource 

efficiency, or issuing policies on corporate reporting requirements. 

At the same time, it is dealing with the intricate job 

of harmonizing – or at least attempting to harmonize – its 

initiatives, roadmaps, action plans, etc., for the sake of cohesiveness. 

A survey published in March 2014 put forward a curious 

finding: 175 respondents to a study done in the SME sector 

in Europe reported a lack of information and knowledge in 

implementing resource-efficiency measures, despite the fact 

that – according to the experts who authored the study – up 

to 50 percent of a company’s costs come from using resources 

such as water, energy, and materials. Since resource-efficiency 

measures are meant to lower the costs of these expenditures, 

the findings are puzzling. It seems that the majority of European 

SMEs fall short of being proactive in a matter that affects 

their revenues, not to mention their environmental footprints. 

Academia could contribute toward understanding this conundrum: 

Researchers have long debated the merits of policy 

in driving business innovations as a response to social and 

environmental challenges, yet policy can be a double-edged 

sword. Policy-making is not an easy game; it is about calibrating 

economic and political interests, which is challenging enough. 

On the one hand, too much of a focus on environmental 

sustainability measures would hinder business operations 

through additional costs – costs that might prove to be economically 

unsustainable – and would undoubtedly attract 

unwanted lobbying against these measures. On top of that, 

it is no easy task to quantify the economic benefits acquired 

in the process of implementing resource-efficiency measures. 

However, as this study revealed, the information asymmetry 

reported here is costing the European industry €630 billion 

each year. No wonder policymakers would like these costs to 

be turned into savings. But how to avoid a situation in which 

the regulations become too strict? 

On the other hand, too little focus will send mixed signals 

to the market, giving the impression that the sustainability 

agenda has not been promoted to the grownups’ table (CFOs 

and CEOs), which is a common view, even in environmentallyconscious 

business cultures, such as the one in Denmark. 


One could say these regulation attempts are better than nothing, 

but I say that, at the rate things are getting done, 2020 

is an unrealistic target. The Commission will need to dust off 

its strategy of pushing things onto the governance agenda 

if Europe is to become a competitive economic force in due 

time. The changes needed are of a systemic nature, and even 

if the business sector is at the heart of our economic recovery, 

turning the European economy into a circular one takes a 

multistakeholder approach. Consumers and civil society need 

to be equally engaged to support such an industry makeover. 

Big questions remain 

Is policy – soft policy, that is – the right driver to push the 

European industry to change its ways? The answer I would give 

is that hard policy is certainly not the right driver, as it would 

never get that far. Talking money in a crisis climate could do 

the trick, though. This is probably why the Ellen MacArthur 

Foundation’s project on the Circular Economy seems to be the 

only model embraced by all stakeholders in this discussion – 

because it talks about concrete economic targets. 

One major aspect not to be overlooked is the fact that it is 

as much about changing the way businesses impact the social 

and environmental aspects of our society as it is about 

changing their mentality about making money. Sustainability 

does not really work as an add-on to what they are already 

doing, and quite soon policies will be put in place to remind 

them of this. 

Last but not least, another factor slowing down the process 

is the unnecessary emphasis on denominations used in the 

issue of sustainability measures. Sustainability is as much the 

producers’ responsibility as it is the consumers’ when they 

spend their money. Until the consumer case story advances to 

the front page of this issue, the pace at which things improve 

will be up to industries and policymakers. 

A case in point here is the latest decision on corporate reporting 

(Feb. 2014), in which listed companies in Europe with more 

than 500 staff (approximately 5,000 companies in Europe) 

are obliged to report specifically on, among other things, 

environmental issues. 

It is about time more people contributed toward decisionmaking. 

What is your take on this? 

Corporations need to abide by the rule of disclosing their due 

diligence policies (mechanisms to identify, prevent, mitigate, 

and account for negative impacts), and their reporting will 

have to include supply chain issues. Critics, however, have 

pointed out the loopholes that limit the effects of this reform, 

as corporations may exempt themselves from disclosing 

sensitive information. The choice of reporting standards and 

indicators also seems to be too flexible, making it difficult 

to use a benchmark. And, of course, there are no sanction 

mechanisms in place. 

Elena Mocanu has been a researcher 

on green business model innovations 

for Worldwatch Institute Europe since 

2012. Additionally, she has worked as 

consultant on resource efficiency for 

the Copenhagen-based European Topic 

Center (Copenhagen Resource Institute). 

58 


Agenda 


UN SECRETARY-GENERAL CALLS FOR 

GREATER INVESTMENT AND COMMITMENT TO MEET 

SUSTAINABLE ENERGY FOR ALL TARGETS 

Sustainable Energy for All is about driving actions and mobilizing commitments to positively 

transform the world’s energy systems. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon launched the 

SE4ALL initiative in 2011 with three objectives: ensuring universal access to modern energy 

services, and doubling the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency and the share of 

renewable energy in the global energy mix, all by 2030. 

The world faces two urgent and interconnected challenges 

related to energy, he noted. One is related to energy 

access. Nearly one person in five on the planet still lacks 

access to electricity. The other challenge is global warming: 

Emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse 

gases from fossil fuels are contributing to changes in the 

Earth’s climate that are causing widespread harm to lives, 

communities, infrastructure, institutions, and budgets. 

Climate change puts us all at risk, but it hurts the poor 

first – and worst. The key to both challenges is to provide 

sustainable energy for all – energy that is accessible, cleaner, 

and more efficient. 

High-Level Group identifies 11 Action Areas 

The Secretary-General’s High-Level Group on Sustainable 

Energy for All has created a Global Action Agenda to guide 

efforts undertaken in support of achieving the initiative’s 

three objectives. It contains 11 Action Areas and provides 

a framework for identifying the high-impact opportunities 

that will catalyze change and prompt innovation. Using 

this framework, countries and stakeholders can create their 

own pathways toward Sustainable Energy for All. 

The Action Areas are grouped into two categories – sectoral 

and enabling. The seven sectoral Action Areas address both 

power generation and the principle sectors of energy consumption. 

They include: 

• modern cooking appliances and fuels 

• distributed electricity solutions 

• grid infrastructure and supply efficiency 

• large-scale renewable power 

• industrial and agricultural processes 

• transportation 

• buildings and appliances 

The four enabling Action Areas characterize cross-cutting 

mechanisms designed to support effective sectoral action 

and address existing obstacles. They include: 

• energy planning and policies 

• business model and technology innovation 

• finance and risk management 

• capacity-building and knowledge-sharing 

Ten years to transform the world’s energy 

Currently one out of five people lives without access to electricity, 

and nearly 40 per cent of the world’s population rely 

on wood, coal, charcoal, or animal waste to cook their food, 

leading to over four million deaths a year, mostly women and 

children, from the effects of indoor smoke. 

At the first annual Sustainable Energy for All Forum, 

the Secretary-General called on all SE4All partners 

to intensify their actions, so that the targets can be met. 

“Our common goal is in sight,” he said. “We have seen that 

solutions exist and that people are implementing them. 

I count on all actors here today to deliver new and expanded 

commitments and partnerships that will transform the global 

energy landscape. We have the responsibility, and we have 

the power.” 

Source: SE4All.org 


60 


Agenda 

Traceability 

TRACEABILITY 


CERTIFICATION BRINGS 

POSITIVE IMPACTS AND 

BETTER TRACEABILITY 

TO BUSINESS 

Eco-labels and other sustainability marks on products are the way that 

most people experience certification. They are a window into production 

practices that might have taken place thousands of miles away – the 

connection between a forester in Brazil and a new piece of furniture; 

or a fishery in the North Atlantic and a meal of fish and chips; or a tea 

picker in Kenya and a morning beverage. But it is not only consumers 

who depend on labels to make informed decisions, it is also retailers and 

many other participants in the supply chain who are looking to improve 

their performance. 

62 


Agenda 

Traceability 

By Karin Kreider 

As the sustainability landscape evolves, so too does the certification 

movement. Whereas “business-as-usual” activities often 

do more harm than good for the planet and communities, 

standards and certification have been identified and proven (so 

far through many studies and a wealth of anecdotal evidence) 

to be excellent tools for achieving sustainability impacts and 

fostering responsible business practices. As one example, in 

the 2014 report Measuring Sustainability, produced by the 

Committee on Sustainability Assessment, information from 

18,000 surveys in Asia, Latin America, and Africa concluded 

that, on average, farms participating in a certification program 

performed better on measures for economic performance and 

access to training than similar farms that did not participate 

in such initiatives. 

The UN Global Compact and ISEAL share the belief that businesses 

should be influenced to scale-up their use of certification 

to increase their positive impacts on people and the 

planet. Certification is reaching scale in many sectors, such 

as for certain food crops (tea, coffee, cocoa, bananas), as well 

as forestry and fishing. Earlier this year, the State of Sustainability 

Initiatives issued its SSI Review 2014, which showed 

remarkable growth in the uptake of certified goods across 

16 leading certification programs in 10 commodities, now 

holding an estimated trade value of $ 31.6 billion (as of 2012), 

according to the report. 

In the seafood industry, more than 20,000 products bear the 

Marine Stewardship Council label. Worldwide, 180 million 

hectares of forest meet Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) 

standards for responsible forestry; FSC has secured commitments 

from no less than 20,000 companies. The London 2012 

Olympics saw all tea, coffee, sugar, and bananas certified as 

Fairtrade. 

Many additional business sectors that are critical for sustainability 

have just begun to transform their supply chains. The 

mining sector is seeing growth in new standards in aluminum, 

steel, gold, and artisanal mining. A similar movement can also 

be seen in the hospitality sectors, in textiles, in oil and gas, 

and in livestock, among other sectors with newly emerging 

sustainability standards and increased interest in responsible 

business practice. Never before has there been a more crucial 

time for standard-setters and certification leaders to show the 

impacts of their programs in order to motivate the adoption 

of credible sustainability standards and certification by the 

huge number of companies that are not yet deeply engaged 

in responsible practices. 

Truthfulness above all else 

As the global association for sustainability standards and 

certification, the ISEAL Alliance defines what good practice 

looks like in certification and labeling, with a core belief 

that credible processes will lead to positive impacts on the 

ground. The most credible standards and certification are 

mission-driven initiatives that monitor their outcomes and 

continually strive to scale-up their social and environmental 

impacts. Unfortunately, many sustainability labels and claims 

are more a product of good marketing than good practice. 


To capture knowledge on what makes a certification program 

credible and effective, we developed the ISEAL Credibility 

Principles. Comprised of the input from 400 experts on five 

continents gathered through a one-year public consultation 

process, these principles represent the first-ever agreement on 

what distinguishes the certification programs that are most 

likely to deliver a real impact from those that do not. 

Buyers can use the Credibility Principles to avoid certification 

and labels guilty of “greenwashing,” such as those developed 

in so-called closed door processes, or that simply require selfdeclarations 

by factory or farm owners to become certified, 

or even just charge a fee for label usage with no inspection 

at all. Mike Barry, Head of Marks & Spencer’s Plan A, stated 

during the launch of the principles last year, “The Credibility 

Principles provide structure, allowing us to take a more systematic 

approach to considering how we make many dozens 

of different raw materials more sustainable.” 

Take an example in the cocoa sector. A chocolate bar might 

have a label indicating that the cocoa beans were sustainably 

grown, but a supermarket’s procurement person can 

dig deeper. Thanks to the language of the ISEAL Credibility 

Principles, the procurement person can ask a certification 

organization if their system embraces relevance, for example, 

by addressing the main challenges in cocoa production, such 

as child labor and the livelihoods of producers, or if they embrace 

the principle of improvement by having a monitoring 

system in place to measure whether their certification has 

a positive impact, such as poverty reduction or biodiversity 

conservation. 

Not surprisingly, the principle that stakeholders ranked as being 

the most important one that credible certification embraces was 

truthfulness. For ISEAL and our members, this reinforced that 

honesty and transparency are what people expect most from 

certification and labels. This is why ISEAL is taking the next 

year to develop a Good Practice Guide on claims and labeling 

that will improve consistency in how certification programs 

make sustainability claims, ensuring they embrace the concept 

of truthfulness, among other important steps and practices. 

It will mean that companies can ensure that their claims and 

labels are accurate, easily understood, and do not overstate 

their benefits. ISEAL’s members will follow the steps in the 

Good Practice Guide, which can be used by businesses, along 

with other ISEAL credibility tools, to filter what practices in 

claims and labels are credible and which are not. 

Better traceability 

Certification has evolved since its origins a few decades ago 

with the organic movement. Companies are no longer interested 

in simply hanging their hats on a sustainability label 

for positive publicity or increased sales. There is a larger set 

of reasons to use certification, including better traceability of 

the product through the supply chain. 

Companies increasingly need to understand where their supply 

comes from and what potential risks they might be exposed 

to, such as child labor, illegal logging, or food contamination. 

Knowing your suppliers and your supply chain is one of the 

first steps in a company’s sustainability journey. Standards 

organizations that are members of ISEAL – including the 

4C Association (coffee), Bonsucro (sugarcane), Responsible 

Jewellery Council (mining and minerals), and UTZ Certified 

(coffee, tea, and cocoa) – are helping companies reduce risk 

and increase transparency in their supply chains. 

The Union for Ethical BioTrade, for instance, is designed 

to help food and cosmetics companies better manage the 

hundreds of biodiversity-derived products in their supply 

chains. One might even begin to call certification programs 

“traceability programs.” Well-functioning traceability systems 

are one of the major benefits to a business that engages with 

certification. Certification and its focus on sound traceability 

and chain-of-custody standards have become a crucial component 

of the sustainability movement, and their impacts and 

credibility are increasing. As part of ISEAL’s work on credible 

claims, we are also examining the link between claims and 

traceability systems. 

64 


Agenda 

Traceability 

Using certification for transparency 

One example of a “front of the pack” company when it comes 

to sustainability is IKEA. Most of us know this huge retailer. 

At the Global Sustainability Standards Conference, an IKEA 

representative asked the audience if anyone had not been to 

an IKEA store. Only one hand was raised in the large room. 

In 2013 IKEA achieved some significant sustainability results, 

including sourcing more than 70 percent of its cotton from 

sustainable sources, and more than 30 percent of its wood 

from what it calls “more sustainable” sources, meaning it 

comes from FSC certified or recycled timber. In addition IKEA 

has developed a set of minimum standards for its leather 

suppliers. It is serving MSC-certified fish in its cafés, and even 

IKEA candles are produced with certified sustainable palm oil. 

Palm oil is one of the most interesting and challenging examples 

in traceability and transparency. Using the IKEA example again, 

the vast majority of IKEA’s palm oil purchases are for its candles. 

As most of us know, palm oil is associated with deforestation and 

biodiversity loss in the tropics, and the product has a complex 

supply chain, with most of the sustainable oil ending up mixed 

in with conventional oil before sale. To improve traceability, IKEA 

works with ISEAL associate member Roundtable on Sustainable 

Palm Oil to source segregated certified palm oil, with a commitment 

to reach 100 percent of IKEA’s supplies by the end of 2015 

(rather than 2020, as previously committed by the company). 

Using a specialized traceability system, IKEA and other buyers 

purchase palm oil through tradable GreenPalm certificates. While 

not offering segregation yet, this is a responsible step as IKEA 

moves toward a supply of wholly segregated certified palm oil. 

In cocoa, companies such as Mars and Nestlé have made commitments 

to the UTZ Certified program to help them track 

the origin and flow of cocoa sourced for their Kit Kat, Mars 

Bars, and other brands. Traceability is one of the foundations 

of the UTZ program, providing a fully automated, accurate, 

and flexible system called their “Good Inside Portal.” As well 

as tracing UTZ Certified coffee, tea, and cocoa for its market 

partners, UTZ also provides the traceability service to other 

certification programs in agriculture, including the Roundtable 

on Sustainable Palm Oil and the Better Cotton Initiative. 

Choosing and supporting credible standards 

Credibility is an important driver for any company thinking 

of engaging in a sustainable sourcing program and looking for 

certification partners to engage with. An additional method of 

determining credibility is to look for a certification program’s 

membership in the ISEAL Alliance, whose members strive to 

scale-up their collective and individual sustainability impacts 

to benefit people and the environment. ISEAL membership 

requires that certification programs demonstrate their effectiveness 

through their compliance with ISEAL’s Codes of 

Good Practice. The Codes include a standard-setting code, an 

assurance code, and an impacts monitoring code. For more 

information on the members of ISEAL, see www.iseal.org. 

Most sustainability standards and certification have been set 

up and implemented to ensure that products are made sustainably. 

For many companies, these certification programs 

have become the most viable approaches to managing their 

supply chain’s impacts on ecosystems and livelihoods. By 

choosing raw materials – certified or verified as sustainable 

by credible certification programs – businesses might better 

achieve their own sustainability objectives. 

Karin Kreider is the Executive Director of 

the ISEAL Alliance and one of the world’s 

leading experts on credible certification 

and eco-labeling. The ISEAL Alliance is 

the global association for sustainability 

standards, and its members include 

organizations such as Fairtrade 

International, the Forest Stewardship 

Council, the Marine Stewardship Council, 

the Rainforest Alliance, and many others. 


THE GLOBAL 

ORGANIC COVENANT 

By Markus Arbenz 

The food crisis of 2008 and the burgeoning issue of climate change 

have given rise to a new discourse on agriculture, wherein its role 

in both creating and addressing global threats is being explored. 

The practice of agriculture and agribusiness has significant 

impacts on climate disruption; food insecurity; poverty and 

social inequity; loss of biodiversity; and the degradation of 

quality water supplies, soil, and air. 

Challenges and solutions for agriculture 

In the above context, the discourse on agriculture is moving 

from a singular emphasis on productivity, which, after decades, 

still leaves more than 2 billion people hungry, toward the view 

that a more holistic and multifunctional approach to farming 

and food is needed in order to sustain the planet. A declaration 

in 2008 by the International Assessment of Agricultural Science 

and Technology for Development, which stated that in agriculture 

“business as usual is not an option,” has been advanced 

in subsequent papers and dialogues. But the transformation 

of agriculture, even among smallholder farmers in developing 

countries, will rely on basic incentives arising from returns on 

investment, knowledge-transfer, risk-reduction, and modeling. 

A model to support this shift lies in plain sight. Organic 

agriculture is rooted in an agro-ecological paradigm, which 

relies on natural cycles and ecological relationships to produce 

healthy plants and animals. Its multifunctional benefits 

include maintenance and restoration of ecological balance 

and environmental quality (soil improvement, enhanced agrobiodiversity, 

and water efficiency); mitigation and adaptation 

for climate change (carbon sequestration; drought, pest, and 

disease tolerance); and contribution to food security and poverty 

reduction (price advantages, farm resilience). It engages 

the precautionary principle in the context of rapid change 

and environmental challenges. Organic agriculture is also 

a market model centered on consumer demand for healthy, 

sustainably produced food and products. 

For more than four decades, organic markets have depended 

on a covenant of trust between consumers and producers. 

Originally, organic standards and certification schemes were 

grassroots initiatives of farmers associations in North America 

and Europe in partnership with activists who set up food cooperatives 

and promoted the marketing of organic produce. 

At the same time, partnerships called Tekkei were established 

in Japan between farmers and community members, who 

were mutually concerned about the increasing use of farm 

chemicals and loss of family farms in rural economies. The 

trust covenant was a natural product of such direct producerconsumer 

links in local contexts, and they remain a valuable 

pillar of organic commerce today. 

Pioneering traceability 

As organic markets grew and diversified, more organic food 

was mixed and transformed, and traveled long distances 

66 


Agenda 

Traceability 

through long chains of custody in the course of trade. What 

did not change in these extended value chains was the 

commitment to assure buyers that the “organic” products 

they purchased were indeed produced according to organic 

principles and standards. To this end, systems for tracing 

organic products were devised and further refined to exploit 

information technologies, and they provided models 

for the development of similar systems in other product 

supply chains. 

Organic tracking systems follow the concept of product 

segregation, that is, all or most of the contents of a product 

– depending on the claim of the organic label – must 

come from organic sources, and the original source and 

related organic certification of every organic ingredient in a 

product must be traceable. Although the classic functions of 

organic traceability systems are to enable corrective actions 

in cases of product irregularity, or to respond to potential 

fraud in organic value chains, these systems are now being 

adapted to restore a degree of direct connectedness between 

producers and consumers, even over long distances. Organic 

companies are pioneering label codes that enable consumers 

to scan them with personal technology to access farm-level 

information, including the producer names and locations, 

organic certification, and descriptions of the farm and farming 

practices. A mother in Sweden can “meet” the Costa Rican 

smallholder cooperative that produced the bananas in her 

child’s organic baby food. 

How then can the Costa Rican bananas be imported to the European 

Union and become organic baby food sold in Sweden? 

Fortunately, the answer in this case is through the EU’s formal 

recognition that Costa Rican organic standards and controls 

are equivalent to its own. But equivalence provisions between 

organic trading partners exist among relatively few countries, 

and new regulation by countries is outpacing the establishment 

of equivalence arrangements. There is a need to scale-up 

these arrangements so that there are ample and diverse organic 

products to supply existing and emerging markets. A second 

need is to maintain the organic covenant with consumers, who 

may question whether the products certified afar and under 

different standards are “organic.” Effecting both the scaling-up 

and transparency of these arrangements is a new frontier and 

offers an opportunity to contribute new models. The organic 

sector, led by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture 

Movements (IFOAM), has partnered with several UN institutions 

– most notably the United Nations Conference on Trade and 

Development and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the 

United Nations – to identify and facilitate equivalence solutions. 

“Is this organic product truly organic?” The organic sector 

has made investments and innovations to always be able 

to answer this question within the context of increasingly 

complex, global market development and the proliferation 

of organic standards worldwide. As a guidepost for future 

market development, this question will persist and continue 

to be honored. 

Equivalence – Room for development 

The proliferation of organic standards and regulations worldwide 

adds another dimension of complexity in organic supply chains, 

and potentially impacts consumer knowledge and confidence. 

Among all the major sustainability labeling schemes and labels 

for food and agriculture products, organic schemes are uniquely 

subjected to government regulation. These regulations govern 

not only domestic production but also the import of organic 

products in more than 60 countries, requiring compliance with 

national standards and certification requirements. 

Markus Arbenz is Executive Director of 

the International Federation of Organic 

Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) e.V. 


STRONG FARMER 

ORGANIZATIONS, 

STRONGER FUTURE 

By Caroline Hickson 

Member-based farmer organizations are key partners to deliver 

effective programs on farm improvements, environmental 

protection, social compliance and well-being, and more. Not 

only do these organizations have a direct relationship with 

individual farmers and their communities, but they are also 

active in difficult-to-reach areas. A growing body of research 

shows that when farmers and their communities are involved 

in decision-making and take ownership of programs, there is 

a much higher success rate. Farmer organizations bring scale 

and reduced costs and provide a structure for crop improvement 

and joint investment. They allow farmers to negotiate 

from a position that would otherwise be beyond their reach. 

They can be strong partners with other supply chain actors 

and with the public sector. “When farmers are strong and 

organized, when we have income and investment, we solve 

problems. We take action on the most important challenges 

our communities face,” explains Chief Adam Tampuri, cashew 

farmer and Chair of Fairtrade Africa. Below are just a few cases 

of Fairtrade farmers’ organizations tackling the most serious 

problems faced by industry. 

Cotton farmers preserving the environment 

Cotton is considered the world’s “dirtiest” crop, with heavy 

chemical and water use. Fairtrade-certified producer organizations 

already use less-intensive techniques than industrialized 

farming, and many are going an extra step. 

Cotton farmer organizations invest a significant portion of 

their Fairtrade Premium (the extra funds from Fairtrade sales) 

toward preserving the health and sustainability of their farms. 

This includes investments in soil management; field-leveling 

and stone contour lines for erosion control and water drainage; 

water harvesting via farm ponds and drip irrigation systems; 

cotton canvas harvest bags to minimize contamination; organic 

fertilization such as compost pits, and more. 

One Fairtrade cotton cooperative in India, Chetna Organic, has 

partnered with international and local government research 

institutes for their participatory seed multiplication and seed 

conservation programs. The scientists are identifying and 

developing natural varieties of cottonseed suitable for the 

local growing conditions and organic agriculture. Chetna is 

training their member farmers to save cotton seeds to plant for 

the next season, and has appointed women “seed guardians.” 

“Seed is the most vital input. Almost 50 percent of farmer’s 

expenditure in cotton goes toward buying seeds,” says Arun 

Ambatipudi, Chetna Organic’s CEO. “Without seed there is 

no agriculture.” 

68 


Agenda 

Traceability 

Sugar farmers addressing child labor 

Fairtrade works in many regions with known risks of child 

labor. Although Fairtrade’s Standards and rigorous auditing 

systems are important, they are only part of the answer to 

successfully eradicating child labor. Farmers can and must 

become key agents of change so they themselves, along with 

their community members, can identify and address unacceptable 

labor practices. 

Paraguay sugarcane production appears on the Global Risks 

Indexes for Child Labour. Immediately following a child 

labor prevention discussion and training hosted by Fairtrade 

International, one certified sugar cooperative voted at their 

general assembly to establish a child labor prevention program. 

Board members and technical representatives of the cooperative 

received training on ways to establish a self-governing 

“youth-inclusive, community-based monitoring and remediation 

system” on child labor and identify risk areas for the phased 

implementation. Young people will work alongside adults 

on this program, and a child rights agency has committed to 

assist in building their capacity on child protection. 

Cocoa farmers tackling poor quality 

After years of underinvestment in cocoa farms, the global cocoa 

industry is facing serious problems with supply. Fairtradecertified 

cocoa organizations in West Africa spent around 

36 percent of their Fairtrade Premium in 2012–2013 on 

projects to improve productivity and quality crop. 

ECOOKIM (Entreprise Cooperative Kimbe), a Fairtrade-certified 

cocoa-growing cooperative in Côte d’Ivoire with 2,800 members, 

identified low quality as a real issue facing their farmers. 

Farmers had poor post-harvest techniques, so some cocoa was 

too humid and grew mold while it was stored. 

Now around eight in ten farmer members have been trained 

in Good Agricultural Practices, which include correct fermentation 

and drying processes. ECOOKIM has also constructed 

two storage warehouses and upgraded drying racks. As a 

result, around 90 percent of members can deliver cocoa that 

is eligible for the international market. 

“The training programs allow members to feel that their 

cooperative is interested in their daily activities and their 

well-being; we are not there simply to collect the cocoa but to 

accompany them on their individual development pathways,” 

says Mamadou Savane, ECOOKIM Sustainability Manager. 

Farmer voice in sustainability community 

Fairtrade is committed to strengthening farmer organizations 

and the role they play in building solutions to global, industrywide 

problems. Farmer ownership and voice in decision-making 

is key to long-term change and meaningful impact at the farm 

and community levels. 

“Farmers invest in improving our farms. We invest in shared 

facilities for storing and processing our crops. We invest in the 

future generation, our children. And we invest in ourselves – 

in training, in building our knowledge and skills, and in 

boosting our income to a dignified level,” says Tampuri. “Although 

farmers understand sustainability challenges better 

than anyone, our voice is still hardly heard in all the global 

debates. This must change.” 

Caroline Hickson is Director of Brand, 

Communications and Strategic 

Partnerships at Fairtrade International. 


“THERE’S NO POINT IN JUST CHECKING OFF A LIST” 

Interview with Maren Sartory, Fairtrade Germany 

Fairtrade wants to create a new label for textiles. Clothing made 

from fairly produced cotton is currently available, but further 

processing only has to comply with core labor guidelines of 

the International Labour Organization that prohibit violations 

such as child labor or forced labor. Going forward, the whole 

production chain will have to comply with fair standards, 

including conditions for the workers in the factories. The first 

Fairtrade-certified shirts and trousers could be available for 

purchase in three years, according to Maren Sartory from 

Fairtrade Germany, who was interviewed by Ingo Arzt on 

behalf of the Council for Sustainable Development. 

Ms. Sartory, does Fairtrade exert a positive influence on the textile 

market, or is this clothing still a largely niche product? 

Maren Sartory: Unfortunately, the market share remains very 

small, and I cannot say for sure how high [it is]. But I wouldn’t 

call it a niche product; there is a lot of media interest in fairly 

produced clothing, and consumers want more of it as well. 

But at the moment, anyone who wants to buy fairly traded 

clothing has to seek it out. 

Why? 

Sartory: Most companies buy their finished materials, T-shirts, 

and trousers from anywhere and are not well-acquainted with 

their supply chains. On the other side, most consumers don’t 

want clothing made with child labor, but they’re looking for 

a bargain. They’re more likely to reach for Fairtrade coffee; 

when it comes to textiles, they have very different intentions: 

Their primary goal is to find clothing that suits them. The 

purchasing behavior is completely different, so here it’s less 

a matter of consumers than of companies having the responsibility. 

They need to ensure that their supply chains are fair. 

At the moment, only the cotton in Fairtrade clothing is fairly traded, 

rather than the whole supply chain. 

Sartory: Exactly. Right now there is actually no standard that 

offers a complete guarantee from beginning to end. GOTS, 

the Global Organic Textile Standard, only applies to organic 

goods, and these make up only a small portion of the market. 

Cotton used in Fairtrade is fairly traded because the current 

standards only govern its cultivation. 

What we want to do now is to guarantee the entire supply 

chain. By the way, Fairtrade is not organic, even if we do 

encourage that sort of cultivation with a bonus and have our 

own environmental criteria. 

Why is it so difficult to certify the whole supply chain? 

Sartory: We don’t just want to create a new standard. We 

were traveling in India recently and went through factories 

where they had 20 different slips of paper hanging there, with 

various certifications and standards of conduct. But these were 

not being followed: Certification would be followed by stasis. 

We also want a company to develop in a particular direction; 

there’s no point in just ticking off a list. 

What does that mean in practice? 

Sartory: One example is that factories have to prove that they’re 

increasing revenue. We also want workers to be educated and 

competent. In the Fairtrade system, we generally work with 

a network of consultants who then help the committees in 

charge of deciding how the Fairtrade money should be invested, 

because the workers making these decisions often have no 

higher education. This all has to be put into place first. 

70 


Agenda 

Traceability 

How many of the large clothing chains have jumped at your idea so far? 

Sartory: There’s no standard yet, but there’s a lot of interest. 

Some of them are selling at least the occasional organic piece. 

With Fairtrade, though, they need to establish long-term 

relationships with their suppliers. Few exist at the moment. 

We want to start developing the standard this year, and we 

hope that we can then get companies on board for the implementation 

as soon as possible. 

Will the clothing get more expensive at that point? 

Sartory: It doesn’t have to. We’ve seen factories in India 

where cheap T-shirts and designer T-shirts were coming off 

of the same production line. Wage costs carry no weight for 

textiles as it is. At any rate, there are enough fairly traded raw 

materials to go around: We have farmers who sell 80 percent 

of their Fairtrade-certified cotton at normal prices because 

there is so little demand for fair production. 

UN GLOBAL COMPACT LAUNCHES 

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE BUSINESS PRINCIPLES 

The UN Global Compact unveiled a set of six principles that 

food and agriculture businesses worldwide can adopt to meet 

food security challenges more effectively and sustainably. 

As the world’s population grows to 9 billion by 2050 and 

demands on global food systems intensify, business will be 

a critical partner for governments and other stakeholders to 

design and deliver effective, scalable, and practical solutions 

for secure food systems and sustainable agriculture. 

With farming and food occupying a pivotal position in 

sustainable development, the Food and Agriculture Business 

(FAB) Principles provide a holistic framework for companies 

to collaborate with the UN, governments, civil society, and 

other stakeholders to meet this challenge. 

As Puvan Selvanathan, Head of Food and Agriculture at 

the UN Global Compact, explains to Asian media company 

Eco-Business: “We welcome all farmers and agribusinesses 

– regardless of size, crop, or location – to make this principlebased 

commitment and show their overall orientation toward 

corporate sustainability.” 

The FAB Principles establish the attributes of well-functioning 

and sustainable global food and agriculture systems, and 

articulate a common understanding of the resources, 

ecosystem services, and socioeconomic impacts needed to 

build resilience into these systems and the markets that they 

serve. The FAB Principles are the first set of global voluntary 

business principles for the food and agriculture sector. 

The six FAB Principles are designed to complement existing 

initiatives that advance sustainability in food and agriculture 

and encompass voluntary standards and technical compliance 

platforms. They provide agreed upon global language of what 

constitutes sustainability in food and agriculture on critical 

issues ranging from food security, health, and nutrition 

to human rights, good governance, and environmental 

stewardship, as well as ensuring economic viability across 

the entire value chain. 

Source: unglobalcompact.org 


WORLD’S FIRST GUIDE ON 

TRACEABILITY ADVANCES 

SUPPLY CHAIN SUSTAINABILITY 

The United Nations Global Compact and BSR have released the first guide 

on traceability, which will help companies and consumers ensure that their 

materials and products are produced responsibly. 

By Elga D. Reyes 

Ensuring that minerals are sourced without conflict or human 

rights abuses is one example of what supply chain traceability 

can accomplish, thanks to the big push the UN Global Compact 

and BSR are making with their new guide on traceability for 

sustainability. 

Supply chain traceability is increasingly becoming a key component 

in the business operations of palm oil, paper, minerals 

and diamonds, and select food commodities, say the United 

Nations Global Compact and BSR. 

The two organizations recently launched the first worldwide 

guide on traceability, which aims to shed light on the importance 

of traceability in achieving sustainability while providing 

steps on how to conduct traceability programs within companies’ 

corporate social responsibility efforts. Called A Guide to 

Traceability: A Practical Approach to Advance Sustainability 

in Global Supply Chains, it also presents lessons and real-life 

case studies on a wide range of products that are applicable 

across companies and industries around the world. 

According to the International Organization for Standardization, 

as cited by the guide, supply chain traceability is “the 

ability to identify and trace the history, distribution, location, 

and application of products, parts, and materials, to ensure 

the reliability of sustainability claims, in the areas of human 

rights, labor (including health and safety), the environment, 

and anti-corruption.” 

72 


Agenda 

Traceability 

Firms are becoming more aware of the significance of traceability 

due to growing regulatory pressures and consumer 

demand for responsibly-sourced and -produced goods and 

services, says the UN Global Compact, the largest voluntary 

corporate sustainability initiative in the world. Currently, 

only a small percentage of products can be traced based on 

sustainability, the organization added. The 45-page guide, 

which culls over a year’s worth of research and interviews, 

noted that such traceability still has a long way to go before 

becoming part of supply chain management and procurement 

practices. 

Ursula Wynhoven, general counsel and chief of governance 

and social sustainability for the UN Global Compact, says: 

“With corporate supply chains growing in scale and complexity 

globally in recent decades, it is critical for companies 

to think beyond short-term financial considerations and 

build capacities to deliver long-term value along the entire 

supply chain.” 

For example, the guide cited schemes that assessed whether 

minerals are sourced from conditions of armed conflict or not, 

ensuring that such conflicts are not financed and that no human 

rights abuses resulted from purchasing these minerals. 

“Only by tracing the origin of these materials in their supply 

chains can companies work to build conflict-free products,” 

says Michael Rohwer, Program Director of the Conflict-Free 

Sourcing Initiative, spearheaded by the Electronic Industry 

Citizenship Coalition and Global e-Sustainability Initiative. 

He adds that strong traceability practices mean tracing the 

metals “all the way back to the mine.” 

Similarly, traceability initiatives include certification programs 

that check the sustainability of producing commodities such 

as cocoa, nuts, and coffee, since the cultivation of these crops 

has an impact on the environment, as noted by the two organizations 

in the report. They explained that monitoring how 

these agricultural items are produced could lead to reducing 

carbon footprints and preventing deforestation. 

Aside from minerals (including diamonds) and cocoa, the 

guide also specifically discusses areas of collaboration and 

alignment for eight other commodities that are frequently 

linked to traceability for sustainability goals: beef, biofuel, 

cotton, fish, leather, palm oil, sugar, and timber. 

Recently, Procter and Gamble adopted a “no-deforestation” policy 

concerning the use of palm oil in their consumer products after 

the continuous campaign of Greenpeace to protect forests and 

the rights of local communities. The manufacturer aims to 

ensure that its products are free from deforestation activities 

by 2020, while its palm oil supply should be traceable by 2015. 

Wynhoven stresses: “Traceability systems offer an unprecedented 

opportunity for companies to improve transparency 

throughout the supply chain and fulfill their wider sustainability 

promises.” 

“Customers want to know that the sustainability claim they 

see on a product is true. When done correctly, traceability 

is a powerful tool to provide reassurance to customers that 

companies mean what they say,” explains Tara Norton, Director 

for Advisory Services at BSR, a consultancy and network of 

more than 250 international firms engaged in sustainability 

and collaboration. “In writing this guide,” she adds, “we aim to 

demystify traceability, to show companies clearly what it is all 

about, who the key players are, and how they can approach it.” 

Elga Reyes 

is a correspondent at Eco-Business, 

the leading publication for Asia Pacific’s 

sustainable business community. 

This interview was originally published 

in Eco-Business. 


INSIDE UNGC / BSR 

A GUIDE TO TRACEABILITY 

There are three main models in terms of how traceability 

schemes trace sustainability claims. These models offer 

different approaches to tracking a claim and confirming 

it at each point in the supply chain. The three models are 

Product Segregation, Mass Balance, and Book and Claim. 

They are differentiated by the extent to which certified and 

non-certified materials are permitted to mix, as well as by 

claims that can be attached to the final product. 

Product Segregation 

The Product Segregation model implies that certified materials 

and products are physically separated from non-certified 

materials and products at each stage along the value chain. 

This ensures that certified and non-certified materials and 

products are not mixed together and that the end product 

comes from a certified source. At the end, consumers know 

Product Segregation 

CERTIFIED 

NON-CERTIFIED 

74 


Agenda 

Traceability 

that 100 percent of their products consist of certified materials. 

There are two segregation models to traceability: Bulk 

Commodity and Identity Preserved (IP). 

A. Bulk Commodity 

The segregation model Bulk Commodity separates certified 

from non-certified materials but allows mixing of certified 

materials from different producers. All producers must 

comply with the certification standards. 

B. Identity Preservation 

The segregation model Identity Preservation (IP) requires 

segregation of the certified materials from the non-certified 

materials and does not allow mixing of certified materials in 

any segment of the value chain – this is done to provide traceability 

from a specific plantation or primary processor to the 

final users. The IP model enables the traceability of products 

back to the originating farm, forest, or production site. 

Mass Balance 

With the Mass Balance model, certified and non-certified 

materials can be mixed. However, the exact volume of certified 

materials entering the value chain must be controlled, 

and an equivalent volume of the certified product leaving 

the value chain can be sold as “certified.” This is common for 

products and commodities where segregation is very difficult 

or impossible to achieve, such as for cocoa, cotton, sugar, and 

tea. Customers may not know whether their specific share 

of the product contains certified or non-certified materials, 

or a mixture of both. Claims of “product contains x percent 

of certified ingredients” can be made. 

Example: Cocoa 

The cocoa supply chain is very complex and makes the process 

of complete segregation expensive to implement for most 

companies. UTZ Certified offers the Mass Balance system 

to boost sustainable production with fewer costs, allowing 

more farmers to benefit from it. 

Book and Claim 

The Book and Claim model is very different from the two 

models discussed above and does not seek to establish traceability 

at each stage in the supply chain. Instead, this model 

relies on the link between the volume of certified materials 

produced at the beginning of the supply chain and the amount 

of certified products purchased at the end of the value chain. 

In the Book and Claim model, a company can obtain sustainability 

certificates for the volume of certified materials that 

it puts into the supply chain. Certified and non-certified 

materials flow freely throughout the supply chain. Sustainability 

certificates are bought via a trading platform and can 

be issued by an independent body. Companies that want to 

make sustainability claims can purchase such certificates. 

Even though it is not certain that their products contain 

certified materials, their production has supported sustainable 

sourcing. Therefore, claims of “product supports the 

sustainable sourcing and production of essential commodities” 

can be made. 

Example: Renewable Energy Certificates 

Companies producing power from renewable energy technologies 

(e.g., solar panels, windmills) can feed their green 

energy into the electrical grid and receive renewable energy 

certificates (REC) in return. Once in the grid, renewable energy 

is impossible to separate from conventionally generated 

energy. RECs can be exchanged, sold, and traded, and the 

owner of the REC can claim to have purchased renewable 

energy. RECs incentivize carbon-neutral renewable energy 

by supporting electricity generated from renewable sources. 

The purchase of RECs allows its owners to claim that their 

purchased energy was generated from an eligible renewable 

energy resource. 

Source: A Guide to Traceability. Published by the United Nations Global Compact and BSR. 


GOOD 

Practice 

Solely responsible for the editorial contributions 

under the heading "Good Practice" are the companies 

and their authors themselves. 

Human Rights 



Sanofi 

Sartex 

Teck 

TeliaSonera 

Transaero Airlines 

Yüksel 

Labour Standards 

Adecco Group 

Audi 

Copeinca 


PostNL 

RWE 

80 

98 

Environment 

Air France - KLM 

Arab African International Bank 


Coop 

EDF Group 

Fjällräven 

GDF SUEZ 

MAN 

Metso 

Novo Nordisk 

Sakhalin Energy 

Thales 

Weidmüller 

Anti-Corruption 

Deutsche Bahn 

Volkswagen 

112 

140 

CSR Management 

BASF 

Bosch 

Deutsche Telekom 

The TMS Group 

Development 

ACCIONA 

AYA Bank 


Nestlé 

Sayga 

SK 

Bradesco 

146 

154 

170 

Financial Markets 

76 Global Compact International Yearbook 2014

154 

98 

112 

114 

100 

156 

80 

146 

148 

170 

116 

118 

102 

140 

160 

150 

120 

122 

124 

82 

126 

130 

164 

132 

104 

106 

108 

134 

84 

88 

166 

168 

90 

92 

136 

152 

94 

142 

138 

96 

aCCIOna 

adecco Group 

air France - KLm 

arab african International Bank 

audi 

aYa Bank 


BaSF 

Bosch 

Bradesco 


Coop 

Copeinca 

Deutsche Bahn 


Deutsche telekom 

eDF Group 

Fjällräven 

GDF SueZ 


man 

metso 

nestlé 

novo nordisk 


PostnL 

rWe 

Sakhalin energy 

Sanofi 

Sartex 

Sayga 

SK 

teck 

teliaSonera 

thales 

the tmS Group 

transaero airlines 

volkswagen 

Weidmüller 

Yüksel 

Global Compact International Yearbook 2014 

77

GOOD PraCtICe 

Human rIGHtS 

LaBOur StanDarDS 

Principle 1: Businesses should support and respect the 

protection of internationally proclaimed human rights; and 

Principle 2: make sure that they are not complicit in 

human rights abuses. 

Principle 3: Businesses should uphold the freedom of association 

and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining; 

Principle 4: the elimination of all forms of forced and compulsory 

labour; 

78 


Human rIGHtS 

80 

82 

84 

88 

90 

92 

94 

96 



Sanofi 

Sartex 

teck 

teliaSonera 

transaero airlines 

Yüksel 

LaBOur StanDarDS 

98 

100 

102 

104 

106 

108 

adecco Group 

audi 

Copeinca 


PostnL 

rWe 

Principle 5: the effective abolition of child 

labour; and 

Principle 6: the elimination of discrimination in 

respect of employment and occupation. 


79

BanCa POPOLare DI SOnDrIO 

mOre tHan JuSt a BanK 

Our way of being a bank also involves our interest in the world of culture. And if “promoting 

culture” is an ambitious task for us, then we dedicate our resources to and make a commitment 

toward creating opportunities for interaction between the general public and the world 

of knowledge, history, and art. 

By Mara Simonini, Banca Popolare di Sondrio 

In addition to its main activities of offering 

banking and financial services, 

Banca Popolare di Sondrio has always 

promoted cultural initiatives and activities 

that are in line with the mission of 

the “popular bank.” It seeks to promote 

both the economic and social growth of 

local communities, which also means 

safeguarding historical, artistic, and 

cultural wealth as well as disseminating 

knowledge and creating recognition. 

The cultural promotions of Banca Popolare 

di Sondrio have always focused on its 

native territory, where the bank has its 

“feet, heart, and head,” with the purpose 

www.popsoarte.it 

of promoting and enhancing the many 

aspects of nature and resources available 

to humans. 

There has been a “dialogue” over the years 

that is based on a true liberal spirit. One 

example is an initiative in 1961, the only 

one of its kind, in which the bank called 

upon some of the major Italian artists 

of that time – Sassu Migneco, Morlotti, 

Spilimbergo, and Cantatore, to name just 

a few – to “paint” the Valtellina. The 

result was a valuable modern art gallery 

dedicated to the Valtellina landscape, leading 

to the production of the catalog 14 

Painters in Valtellina and Valchiavenna. 

A literary counterpart to that operation 

was the promotion of the novel-diary 

The Adventure in Valtellina, written by 

the renowned writer and director Mario 

Soldati. The work inspired the documentary 

Cliffs of Wine by Ermanno Olmi in 

2009, which focused on winegrowing in 

Valtellina. The bank also supported the 

featured terraced vineyards in obtaining 

UNESCO World Heritage recognition. 

Banca Popolare di Sondrio also supported 

another initiative that is unique in the 

Italian banking world: http://www.popsoarte.it. 

It is an innovative internet communication 

project founded in 2004 that 

is dedicated to all art lovers. In a new and 

surprising manner, it provides a series of 

virtual exhibitions that presents works 

that are already on the bank’s website – 

to revisit the history of art through the 

bank’s very own art masterpieces. Today 

the institute is able to ensure, thanks to 

modern computer technology, complete 

accessibility, including for the blind, for 

whom special cards have been designed, 

along with the development of the most 

sophisticated technological devices. 

In enhancing its art gallery, Banca Popolare 

di Sondrio has, as always, focused 

on boosting the artistic heritage of the 

province of Sondrio. In October 2007, in 

the presence of the Minister of Education, 

the Honorable Dr. Giuseppe Fioroni, 

Banca Popolare di Sondrio inaugurated 

the Luigi Credaro Library, named after the 

eponymous educator born in Valtellina 


Good Practice 

Human rights 

who was a Member of Parliament, Senator, 

and Minister of Education. 

It is a library “for the territory” and allows 

access to the substantial and valuable 

archive and book wealth owned by 

Banca Popolare di Sondrio. It includes 

important and coveted correspondence 

by the economist and sociologist Vilfredo 

Pareto, together with the archives and 

library of Battista Leoni, a learned celebrity 

from Sondrio. This is all thanks to a 

number of generous donations made by 

customers and shareholders. 

The bank’s publishing activities, which 

have developed considerably alongside 

the institutional banking business over 

almost half a century, have produced a 

large number of publications mainly 

aimed at enhancing the human and 

environmental aspects of the province 

of Sondrio, and which are also accessible 

on the dedicated website. 

The prestigious “Notiziario,” established 

in 1973 and distributed by the bank every 

four months, boasts an ongoing collaboration 

of some of the most prestigious names 

in Italian journalism and publishing, as 

well as notable figures such as Pope Emeritus 

Joseph Ratzinger. These contributions 

make it a quality magazine, an observation 

on today’s society, its transformations, 

its problems, and its prospects as well as 

an outlook on the socioeconomic reality 

of the province of Sondrio. The publication, 

also available in the online version, 

helped the bank obtain the Guggenheim 

Award in 1999 for the “bank for culture.” 

The intense “cultural activity” is also realized 

through conferences and meetings 

that are open to the public. The last 40 

years have seen more than 100 speakers 

at the conference room in Sondrio, 

including some of the most authoritative 

national and international representatives 

from the worlds of politics, 

economy, culture, journalism, sports, 

and entertainment. The events are also 

accessible via the bank’s website. 

Banca Popolare di Sondrio is also extremely 

active in the field of education 

and the dissemination of knowledge with 

events and projects that are dedicated to 

Italian students. The subsidiary of the 

nonsolobanca.popso.it 

www.popso.bibliotecacredaro.it 

bank Pirovano Stelvio SpA – the Sky and 

Mountain University – at Stelvio Pass has 

signed a memorandum of agreement with 

the Italian Ministry of Education to offer 

Italian students courses on various topics 

such as nature, water, energy, and peace. 

At the Stelvio Pass, the bank supported 

the creation of the Donegani Museum, 

where, with its extensively documented 

and illustrated images and photographs 

from the past, visitors are able to piece 

together the extraordinary puzzle of the 

history of the Pass, with an impressive reconstruction 

of the trenches of the “Great 

War.” To commemorate the outbreak 

of World War One, Banca Popolare di 

Sondrio is supporting the documentary 

film Stelvio – Crossroads of Peace. 

On the domestic scene, Banca Popolare di 

Sondrio presents itself as a highly active 

player, not only in the economics and 

finance fields, but also as an intermediary 

encouraging the promotion of culture. 


81

Green DeLta InSuranCe 

unLOCKInG POSSIBILItIeS: 

a SteP tOWarD BuILDInG 

reSOurCeFuL CItIZenS 

By Syed Najmus Saquib and Yashna Islam, Green Delta Insurance 

It is noteworthy how, in the past few years, Bangladesh has seen rapid progress in many 

sectors, which was unthinkable even a decade ago. Bangladesh is showing consistent growth 

every year. We are being viewed as “The Next Asian Tiger” worldwide. Among all the positive 

news, the absence of human rights in many cases is hindering our development as a nation. 

Women and children as well as poverty-stricken people are always the most deprived ones 

when it comes to human rights. 

The Ten Principles set by the UN Global 

Compact have always been treated with 

importance by Green Delta Insurance 

(GDIC). In previous years, GDIC has emphasized 

environmental issues, labor 

rights, and safety issues through their 

communication tools. Many issues regarding 

human rights also came into the 

picture. In 2012, GDIC took the initiative 

to create awareness for human rights. 

The first initiatives taken by the GDIC 

team – with the help of its creative 

agency – were to use “shadow puppetry” 

in our desk calendar to portray elements 

of human rights in a symbolic manner. 

After that, GDIC took the initiative to 

make direct and positive impacts on the 

lives of underprivileged people. 

As the Bangladesh experience shows, 

economic growth alone is not always 

enough to achieve higher levels of human 

development. Countries that invest 

in education, health, and social protection, 

as well as those that promote gender 

equality, are moving toward success 

more quickly. Keeping these things in 

mind, a significant CSR project in recent 

years named “SHE” was introduced by 

our Managing Director and CEO, Ms. 

Farzana Chowdhury. “Supporting Her 

Empowerment” (SHE) is a Women Empowerment 

and Development Program 

by Green Delta Insurance Company Ltd. 

to facilitate gender equality and women 

empowerment in the workplace. In a 

male dominant society such as ours, this 

program proved to be effective and offered 

open floor discussions, counseling, 

mentoring, career development, and 

special training programs for women. 

Women have the ability to contribute 

toward our country’s development, but 

sadly they are always overshadowed. 

GDIC also works for children’s rights. 

As in previous years, this year we made 

donations to and sponsored many cultural 

and fundraising programs of NGOs 

and schools. Green Delta Insurance also 

joined hands with Bangladesh’s “Women 

Chamber of Commerce and Industry” in 

2013 to support their dignified causes. It 

started with the BWCCI-GDIC Progressive 

award in 2012, which recognized promising 

female entrepreneurs of Bangladesh. 

GDIC is trying to assist women entrepreneurs 

financially and has requested that 

they step into formal sectors more often. 

The most significant project that Green 

Delta Insurance has been working on 

is based on children’s rights. We have 

partnered with a renowned NGO for this 

cause. They have a number of schools all 

over Bangladesh that provide state-of-theart 

education for poor and underprivileged 

children. They are always looking 

for sponsors to take responsibility for the 

students. There are millions of children 

in Bangladesh who live under the poverty 

line. They can be seen on streets all 

over the capital city: tired, hungry, and, 

more often than not, exploited. They get 

involved in dangerous professions just 

to put food in their stomachs. Instead of 


Good Practice 

Human rights 

going to school and playing with their 

friends, these children roam the streets 

aimlessly and lose their childhoods as 

their lives slowly become a nightmare. 

Keeping all these things in mind, Green 

Delta Insurance signed a memorandum 

of understanding with them to take 

responsibility for 40 students, which is 

a whole class. The sponsorship started 

with the junior-most class and it will 

continue till those 40 students graduate. 

This sponsorship will go beyond 

the financial aid needed. GDIC will also 

provide medical support, skill training, 

recreation, and a guaranteed job facility 

if needed. GDIC will do everything 

required so that they grow up to be 

confident, independent, and resourceful 

citizens of our nation. These children will 

be celebrating all the cultural programs 

and festivals of our country and receive 

gifts on special occasions. They will be 

taken to amusement parks and movies 

to ensure their entertainment needs 

are met. From time to time, GDIC will 

bring them to the head office to give 

them exposure to the corporate world. 

Awareness will be created about working 

for our country’s development and they 

will also be taught how to be ethical, no 

matter how critical the circumstances 

are. We believe that all these things will 

help them with ambition so that they 

continue their studies as qualified and 

well-educated students. Our aim is to 

groom these 40 children so that they can 

live their dreams and at the same time 

contribute to our country’s development 

and betterment. These 40 students will 

be known as Green Delta Kids. 

Illiteracy leads to poverty and, poverty 

leads to crime. This creates obstacles for 

a country’s development. Education is 

also very important because it is typically 

the key to a better future. It is our 

duty to build an educated nation and 

do something for unprivileged children 

so that they can raise their standards of 

living and blend in with society. 

We believe this small initiative will help 

these kids to take part in this social world 

and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the 

rest of the population. These children 

should never feel discriminated against, 

and the talent hidden inside them should 

be brought out so that they can lead 

healthy lives. There is no surer way out 

of poverty than a solid education, but 

that education has to be affordable and 

needs to be equally distributed. 

Many people are being deprived of their 

rights – they do not complain because 

they are not even aware of their rights. We 

promise to continue to promote human 

rights and take the necessary initiatives. 

We will work for the survival of underprivileged 

people against all the odds. 


83

SanOFI 

Human rIGHtS – 

SanOFI aPPrOaCH 

In line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, Sanofi has adopted 

an ambitious and holistic approach to ensure that human rights are soundly integrated 

throughout all the Group’s operations. For Sanofi, it is essential to ensure that respect for 

human rights is integrated into our business activities everywhere we operate, including in 

countries considered to be at risk for matters concerning human rights. 

By Tatiana Campos-Rocha and Laurent Lhopitallier, Sanofi 

We have to address human rights issues 

that are common to all types of 

businesses, such as labor conditions, 

employee safety, and the abolition of 

forced labor and child labor. At the same 

time, we must also answer to issues 

that are specific to our business sector, 

such as improving access to healthcare 

and respecting rules of ethics during 

clinical trials. 

Human rights principles are addressed 

in our main internal reference documents, 

such as our Code of Ethics, our 

Supplier Code of Conduct, and our Social 

Charter. These are to be considered as the 

minimum applicable standards should 

local regulations be less stringent in any 

of the Group’s countries of operation. 

However, human rights in business is a 

complex topic by nature and it cannot be 

addressed only through reference documents 

and a standardized methodology. 

It requires a strong Group ambition and 

a holistic vision in order to identify and 

implement all necessary tools aimed at 

raising the awareness of employees so 

that they progress step by step. 

Some key components of this holistic 

approach are as follows. 

1. Adopting a human rights 

statement 

The cornerstone of our approach is to 

prepare and adopt a human rights statement 

that sets the tone of our commitment 

(see right page). 

2. Identifying human rights impacts 

in our value chain 

Respect for human rights forms the 

foundation upon which our CSR policy 

is built. By complying with international 

human rights standards and principles, 

Sanofi makes a formal commitment to 

incorporate human rights principles in 

the Group’s operating activities. 

Using a collaborative and sectorial approach 

targeted at human rights in the 

pharmaceutical industry and in the 

workplace, in 2013 the Group designed 

the guide “Human Rights in Our Activities” 

in order to provide a practical tool 

that reflects the realities of our day-to-day 

business activities. 

Because Sanofi’s core business is the 

development and commercialization 

of medicines and vaccines, we have designed 

this guide in order to follow the 

four steps in the lifecycle of a drug, with 

the key human rights principles expected 

from the stakeholders and illustrations 

of best practices given along the way. 

This document also includes a section 

dedicated to human rights at work across 

various functions – it outlines the best 

practices a responsible employer should 

put in place all along the value chain. 

Sanofi has designed the Human Rights 

Guide with four aims: 

• Inform and familiarize all Sanofi employees 

with the key human rights 

principles. 

• Identify potential impacts of Sanofi 

activities on human rights as well as 

associated expectations from stakehold- 


Good Practice 

Human rights 

“As a multinational healthcare company that is keenly aware of our social responsibility, 

Sanofi is committed to integrating respect for human rights into all our business 

operations and public positions. We are convinced that the principles of human 

rights apply to people, to nations, and, by extension, to businesses. While states and 

governments have a duty to guarantee human rights through adequate laws and 

policies, we believe that businesses also have a role to play. It begins with them 

identifying their own impact on human rights compliance and taking measures to 

prevent human rights violations. 

For several years now, Sanofi has expressed and reiterated our commitment to 

the Ten Principles of the United Nations Global Compact and other international 

standards in the field of human rights. In addition, we have made it one of the cornerstones 

of our corporate social responsibility (CRS) approach, in line with the 

UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. We are committed to 

promoting respect for human rights principles in all areas of our business – from 

improving access to healthcare and upholding ethical standards to respecting fundamental 

employee rights and taking steps to preserve our planet. 

Stakeholders today put increasing pressure on businesses to provide transparent 

information about their human rights practices, which also have the potential to 

significantly impact a company’s business and reputation as well as to enhance trust between customers and corporations. 

We believe that responding to stakeholders’ expectations and addressing these issues represents an opportunity to improve 

both our human rights performance and our bottom line. 

One of the key success factors in promoting respect for human rights in business is ensuring that all stakeholders are fully 

aware of their individual and collective rights and are informed about their respective obligations toward one another.” 

Gilles Lhernould, Senior Vice-President CSR, Sanofi 

ers to reduce negative impacts and 

maximize positive ones. 

• Describe a selection of Sanofi good practices 

at every step of a drug’s lifecycle 

and in the workplace. 

• Act as a reference point for all Sanofi 

managers making decisions about potential 

issues linked to human rights 

in their daily activities. 

In order to take into account the extent 

and nature of human rights issues faced 

by Sanofi, this document was built using 

a cross-functional and participative 

approach that included representatives 

from more than 12 Sanofi Directions. 

In addition, this guide was offered to 

Sanofi employees in December 2013 

within the framework of Human Rights 

International Day. It is supplemented 

by tools (slide kit, website pages, etc.) 

to help Sanofi managers better understand 

their roles and responsibilities in 

applying the guide, and it will serve as 

an educational tool for its deployment 

in the different Group organizations, 

regions, and countries. 

For more information, please visit: 

http://en.sanofi.com/csr/download_center/ 

download_center.aspx 

a FOCuS On Human rIGHtS In reSearCH 

anD DeveLOPment 

Stakeholder expectations: Ensure that all research participants, including 

vulnerable persons, have given individual and informed consent and that their 

rights to information on benefits and risks prior to consent are respected and 

protected. 

A best practice: Sanofi Brazil developed a Free and Informed Consent form in 

comic-book format to improve understanding of clinical-trial procedures among 

participants. 

Key human rights: Right to health; right to access to information; right to life, 

liberty, and security; right to not be subjected to medical or scientific experimentation 

without one’s free consent; right to privacy. 


85

SanOFI 

3. Evaluating and mitigating risks 

linked to human rights 

Sanofi adopts a proactive strategy to manage 

risks related to our business. To implement 

this strategy and to address all risks 

that we may be exposed to in connection 

with our activities, we rely on a dedicated 

risk-management organization, including 

a Risk Committee, which is chaired by 

the Senior Vice-President of CSR; a Risk 

Coordination Direction, which is part of 

the CSR Direction; and Risk Coordinators, 

who are responsible for risk assessments 

within their areas of responsibility. 

In 2013, under the coordination of the 

Group Risk Management Direction, a 

working group was established in order 

to provide a risk profile on Social and Human 

Rights within Sanofi and at the level 

of its suppliers; to propose actions plans 

when relevant; and to monitor critical 

risks. The recommendations made by the 

working group will be evaluated in 2014 

by the Group Risk Committee for further 

implementation of relevant actions. 

4. Performing due diligence 

assessments of operations and 

evaluations of suppliers 

As a supplement to the work done in line 

with the guide “Human Rights in Our 

Activities,” we encourage and enable the 

Group’s different functions to evaluate 

the impact of their own activities, with 

a particular focus on identifying any 

potential human rights concerns. 

Self-assessment at the Group level: Evaluation 

of Sanofi’s practices at the corporate 

level is based on the Business and 

Human Rights Matrix of the Business 

Leaders Initiative for Human Rights, 

which allows the Group to establish an 

inventory of practices and identify any 

areas for improvement. 

Local self-assessment: The CSR Excellence 

Direction also performed a self-assessment 

of practices in a pilot country, India, 

selected on the basis of potential risks 

of human rights concerns according to 

the Maplecroft methodology. This evaluation 

was performed using the Human 

Rights Assessment Tool for Pharmaceutical 

Companies created by the Danish 

Institute for Human Rights. The results 

of this assessment were encouraging 

and highlighted India as an example 

for other countries to follow. 

We also designed and deployed a specific 

risk-methodology to identify and assess 

suppliers that should receive priority attention 

in terms of evaluation and monitoring 

for CSR risks, and Human Rights 

risks in particular. A combination of 34 

procurement categories and 36 countries 

have been targeted as priorities in our 

suppliers’ evaluation campaign: A total 

of 335 suppliers have been evaluated 

since the start of our campaigns in 2011. 

5. Training senior executives and 

operational managers 

SanOFI PeDIatrIC 

HeaLtHCare InItIatIve 

Since 2010, a total of 84 managers and 

senior executives representing more than 

25 functions have received one full day of 

training about human rights in business. 

In-house human rights training sessions 

are organized with the support of outside 

experts. These experts help prepare the 

training program, which includes “case 

study” workshops relating to the human 

rights issues that Sanofi addresses. The 

training sessions also provide an opportunity 

to regularly discuss and share best 

practices. The human rights program is 

part of the training catalog available on 

the dedicated training platform accessible 

to all Sanofi employees in France. 

6. Our focus on children’s rights 

Our commitment to respect children’s 

rights and to integrate this dimension 

into our operations is part of our human 

rights approach and complies with the 

Children’s Rights and Business Principles 

developed by UNICEF in March 2012 

alongside the UN Global Compact and 

Save the Children project. It represents 

the first time comprehensive guidance 

has been offered to companies on how 

to integrate children’s rights into their 

policies and business processes. 

As a healthcare company, we have a 

particular duty to both ensure that our 

products and services are safe for children 

and to support children’s rights 

through them. Today, Sanofi is the only 

pharmaceutical company to offer a vast 

portfolio of pediatric products that covers 

41 percent of the molecules and vaccines 

on the World Health Organization’s Essential 

Medicines List for Children. 

In Africa, since the launch of the pediatric 

initiative, we have made 36 pediatric 

products available on the market that 

A Sanofi pediatric healthcare initiative has been created to acknowledge our 

company-wide commitment to children’s health and to unify our pediatric resources 

across all division and brands to better answer children’s health needs. 

This initiative, called “Healthy Children, Happy Children,” focuses on pediatric 

care in emerging markets (e.g., Africa, Latin America). We are already the 

leading pharmaceutical company in these markets, the one with the longest, 

most dependable presence in providing medications and services as well as in 

developing productive relationships. Our goal, now more than ever, is to provide 

every child the opportunity to lead a healthier and happier life. 


Good Practice 

Human rights 

cover six major therapeutic areas; trained 

or given access to medical information 

for better treatment to more than 50,000 

healthcare professionals; raised the general 

public’s awareness about children’s 

healthcare; and improved the health 

education of 15,000 children through 

different events (e.g., diabetes camps, 

fun centers in hospitals, etc.). 

Sanofi participates in numerous additional 

projects in close cooperation with 

local governments and institutions in order 

to protect and fulfill children’s rights. 

6.1 Fighting childhood cancer 

To fight childhood cancer and improve 

survival rates in low- and middle-income 

countries, in 2006 the Sanofi Espoir 

Foundation created My Child Matters 

as a sustainable cooperation with its 

partners, the Union for International 

Cancer Control, the St. Jude Children’s 

Research Hospital, and other international 

childhood cancer organizations. 

Since 2006, 45 projects have received 

support in 33 countries thanks to the 

Sanofi Espoir Foundation’s investment 

of € 7.2 million to date. A total of 14 

projects were ongoing in 22 countries 

in Asia, Africa, and Latin America in 

2013, and more than 40,000 children 

were supported. 

6.2 Raising awareness about 

Diabetes in School 

1. In Turkish schools, Sanofi organized 

an ambitious project to raise awareness 

among children and teachers about type 

1 diabetes, childhood obesity, and healthy 

eating habits. The aim is to go beyond 

building awareness and actually improve 

diabetes management in collaboration 

with teachers. 

This program is part of the National 

Diabetes Program led by the Turkish 

Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education, 

and the Pediatric Endocrinology 

and Diabetes Association. In 2013, as 

an outcome of the Diabetes in School 

program, the Ministry of Education published 

a revised “Circular on Diabetic 

Children” to extend its scope to school 

administrators, teachers, parents, and 

school bus drivers so that they work in 

close cooperation in order to protect the 

health of diabetic pupils. Since 2010, 

the program has reached more than 7.5 

million children and 580,000 teachers. 

2. The Kids and Diabetes 

in Schools (KiDS) program 

was launched in 

India by our CEO, Christopher 

A. Viehbacher, and 

Sir Michael Hirst, President of the International 

Diabetes Federation (IDF), 

during a 2013 visit to Mumbai. This 

joint public health initiative is based on 

a partnership between Sanofi, IDF, and 

the Public Health Foundation of India. 

According to an International Diabetes 

Federation study, diabetes is a major 

public health challenge in India, which 

is ranked number two globally in terms 

of the spread and impact of diabetes. An 

estimated one out of five children with 

type 1 diabetes is an Indian. 

For children with diabetes type 1, KiDS 

aims to foster a safe and supportive school 

environment to manage their diabetes 

and fight discrimination. It also teaches 

children about healthy eating habits and 

the importance of exercise to curb the 

increasing burden of type 2 diabetes. 

For more information on Children’s Rights and 

Business Principles, please visit: 

http://www.unicef.org/csr/88.htm 

For more information on Fighting childhood 

cancer, please visit: 

http://fondation-sanofi-espoir.com/en/ 

http://fondation-sanofi-espoir.com/en/news-2014- 

02-15-childhood-cancer-day-2014.php 

The program focuses on: 

• decentralization to bring childhood 

cancer care closer to patients’ homes; 

• early diagnosis through family awareness 

and caregiver training for timely 

detection of signs and symptoms of 

cancer; 

• palliative care to improve quality of 

life by reducing suffering for the large 

number of children with cancers too 

advanced to cure; 

• population-based childhood cancer registries 

to understand regional disease 

burdens and guide future health policies. 


87

SarteX 

SarteX traInInG Center – 

renaISSanCe FOr 

DeSPerate YOutH 

Since its independence in 1956 – and thanks to the wisdom of the former leader President 

Habib Bourguiba – Tunisia has focused its recovery strategy on the implementation of an 

education that can generate a solid base of human capital that is able to meet the changing 

needs of a developing nation. In just a few years, the education of children aged 6 to 16 years 

has become compulsory and free – this small North African country allocates more than 

25 percent of its state budget to education and teaching. In the years after independence 

until the late 1980s, the development of a socio-economic balance brought integration and 

employment through a professional training of rare trades – even for those who did not 

have access to higher education. 

By Rachid Zarrad, Sartex 

During the past three decades – and in 

the absence of a clear strategic vision – 

the Tunisian education system went 

through several structural reforms. These 

were often poorly studied and did not 

taking into account the new social and 

economic conditions of the country. Today, 

Tunisia is confronted with a serious 

social phenomenon: namely, the 

school dropout rate of youth without 

any professional qualifications and with 

low academic levels. The 2012–2013 

school year illustrates this failure: the 

premature dropping out of about 100,000 

students, including 10,000 in primary 

schools – figures that have never been 

seen in Tunisia since its independence. 

The number of school dropouts is increasing 

every year. These disadvantaged 

young people are deprived of a 

chance to have a proper life and risk 

being pushed to the margins of society. 

With no qualifications and no expertise, 

these young people will have very 

low chances to participate in an active 

life in a society that is still seeking to 

expand its lifestyle, especially after 

a revolution that deposed a corrupt 

dictatorship. What will be the fate of 

these thousands of young people? What 

is our responsibility as industrialists? 

What can we do to save and protect 

the youth against poverty, ignorance, 

and crime? 

Each year, dozens of unemployed young 

Tunisians go looking for jobs in the clothing 

industry. There is a strong demand 

for skilled labor here, despite the fragility 

of the sector and strong competition. 

These young people, mostly devoid of 

all qualifications and diplomas, find 

themselves unable to start a career and 

are often doomed to failure due to lack 

of experience and life skills. 

SARTEX is a textile company based in the 

central region of Tunisia in the town of 

Ksar Hallal, which was proclaimed the 

Tunisian capital for textiles by former 

leader Bourguiba. Offering more than 

3,300 direct jobs in the export industry, 


Good Practice 

Human rights 

the SARTEX company is now among the 

leaders specialized in jeans and sportswear 

for reputable international brands 

in Europe, the United States, and Asia. 

Since its creation in 1983, SARTEX has 

been true to its values of citizenship 

and social responsibility. It is especially 

the youth and those condemned by the 

social and economic conditions of the 

country that SARTEX has been trying 

to help – by giving them a chance and 

new hope for an honorable life. 

Believing in the capacity of youth and 

conscious of its responsibilities, SARTEX 

managed to monitor some of these young 

people by inviting them to register for 

free in its integrated training center, 

STC: Sartex Training Center. This helps 

them to learn a profession by developing 

their skills and knowledge about the 

basics regarding textiles, allowing them 

to earn a diploma that is recognized 

throughout Tunisia. The development 

of this expertise by SARTEX helps build 

a long-term labor pool. It encourages 

these young employees to become active 

and positive members of its organization 

who share its corporate culture and civic 

responsibilities as well as act positively 

in order to realize its strategic mission: 

on the development of technical skills and 

the continuous improvement of education. 

The training program is crowned with a 

Professional Competence Certificate (PCC), 

notarized by the ministry for employment, 

with whom SARTEX has an agreement for 

technical assistance in the regional center 

of textile and clothing, Ksar Hallal. The 

laureates of the PCC will continue their 

studies to obtain the Professional Technician 

Certificate. 

After finishing their training program, 

all apprentices enrolled in the center are 

immediately hired and integrated into 

the production lines of SARTEX. Each 

year, the STC is committed to provide 

training and employment for 250 young 

people. Since its partnership with GIZ 

began, 280 school dropouts have been 

able to finish this training program and 

be integrated directly into the production 

lines at SARTEX. This project can also 

meet the needs of other industrial textile 

companies interested in and searching 

for qualified workers. During the training 

and employment of young people, SAR- 

TEX vouches for their rights and duties 

within a compliant and legal framework 

that is inspired by universal labor standards 

and codes of conduct with respect 

to the rules of health, hygiene, and environment, 

in compliance with universal 

standards of human rights. Since 2005 

SARTEX has been a pioneer in Tunisia 

in supporting the Ten Principles of the 

United Nations Global Compact. A great 

focus is given to these Principles in the 

training program. Our goal remains to 

change youth who are considered by 

society to be worthless and unskilled into 

qualified, creative, and innovative people. 

Training, Evaluation, and Continuous 

Improvement are the three strategic 

axes of our integrated center, and on 

which its pedagogic program is based – 

all developed by national and international 

experts as well as the managers of 

SARTEX. The originality of the center also 

lies in the involvement of young men in 

a profession that was historically meant 

for women. So now, boys and girls have 

equal opportunities to learn a trade, 

acquire the knowledge that was missed 

at school, and earn a job in a company 

that is a leader in the sector. 

“to contribute to the sustainable development 

of the country, providing 

our customers with innovative, safe, 

and attractive products and services, 

in a healthy environment and a motivating 

and empowering framework.” 

(Extract from the strategic mission 

of SARTEX) 

The STC was established in July 2012 as 

part of a Tunisian-German cooperation – 

under a partnership agreement with the 

German organization Deutsche Gesellschaft 

für Internationale Zusammenarbeit 

(GIZ) – and has aimed to strengthen its 

system and further enrich its educational 

programs. This investment of approximately 

€ 1 million in human capital provides 

a program certified by international 

German and French experts that focuses 

aBOut SarteX - uSaID PartenerSHIP 

the top management of SarteX decided with the uSaID team based in tunisia 

to work on a different and somewhat innovative approach through an experienced 

"industrial psychology" tunisian consultant. the aim was to improve the morale 

of the troops at all levels and the inter- personal competencies, to create a professional 

"train the trainer" program and a new level of true, international level, 

in house trainers and finally to develop new competencies in terms of training 

young with no previous experience in a high level training Center. 

“this innocent smile 

gives meaning to 

our existence.” 

(Mr. Kamel Zarrad, 

CEO SARTEX) 


89

teCK 

aDDreSSInG tHe GLOBaL 

HeaLtH ISSue OF 

ZInC DeFICIenCY 

By Alannah Cervenko, Teck 

As one of the world’s largest producers of zinc, Teck is 

committed to helping solve the global health issue of 

zinc deficiency. Zinc is an essential micronutrient for 

human health and crucial for normal growth and brain 

development. Each year, nearly 450,000 children die as a 

result of not having enough zinc in their diets. Millions 

more suffer from complications associated with zinc 

deficiency, including stunted growth and a weakened 

immune system that leaves them unable to fight illnesses. 

At the Copenhagen Consensus in 2008, 

a group of leading global economists 

ranked micronutrient supplements – 

specifically zinc and vitamin A – as the 

top international development priority 

out of more than 40 interventions 

considered. The group determined that 

every dollar spent on increased access 

to zinc supplementation results in $17 

in economic benefits. In the countries 

with the highest burdens, the economic 

benefits of zinc supplementation can 

be up to 100 times higher than the cost. 

In 2011, Teck launched its Zinc & Health 

program to raise awareness and contribute 

to short- and long-term solutions 

to zinc deficiency worldwide. To date, 

more than 40 million people have been 

reached as a result of Teck’s programs 

and partnerships, and millions more will 

benefit from efforts to improve education 

and training. 

Therapeutic zinc 

Each day, diarrhea kills more than 1,500 

children under the age of five. Ninety 

percent of these child deaths happen in 

developing countries in Asia and Africa, 

where clean drinking water, sanitation, 

and access to urgent medical care is limited. 

Therapeutic zinc, combined with 

oral rehydration salts (ORS), is a simple, 

inexpensive treatment for diarrhea and 

can prevent future episodes for up to 

three months. 


Good Practice 

Human rights 

Teck is a founding member of the Zinc 

Alliance for Child Health (ZACH), a public-private 

civil society alliance created 

to develop and sustain zinc treatment 

programs that will help save children’s 

lives. The first partnership under ZACH 

is a C$20 million commitment by Teck, 

the Micronutrient Initiative, and the 

Government of Canada to scale-up zinc 

treatments in sub-Saharan Africa. In April 

2013, Teck announced a $5 million fiveyear 

partnership with UNICEF Canada 

under ZACH in India to save the lives of 

more than 150,000 children by 2017 – 

and 50,000 lives annually going forward 

– by improving access to and use of zinc to 

treat diarrhea, one of the leading causes 

of child mortality in the country. 

To date, 5 million children have benefited 

from ZACH programs. ZACH has 

also worked with governments to secure 

over-the-counter status for zinc, reduced 

the price of the treatment, and educated 

thousands of mothers and caregivers to 

effectively treat childhood diarrhea with 

zinc and ORS. 

Zinc supplementation 

Today, one in four children are malnourished, 

increasing the risk of stunted 

growth and impaired development. 

Micronutrient powders are single-dose 

packets of zinc and other vitamins and 

minerals to increase the micronutrient 

content in a child’s diet to ensure healthy 

development. 

Teck led the creation of Zinc Saves Kids 

in 2009, an initiative of the International 

Zinc Association, to improve the 

survival, growth, and development of 

undernourished children with micronutrient 

deficiencies by funding UNICEF’s 

zinc supplementation programs in Nepal 

and Peru. 

UNICEF is reporting substantial progress 

in both countries. More than 600,000 

children under the age of three have 

received zinc supplementation, and levels 

of stunted growth have decreased by 

9 percent in both countries since 2010. 

Awareness and advocacy 

A major objective of the Zinc & Health 

program is to educate Teck employees 

and the public about zinc deficiency 

and the devastating effects of diarrhea. 

Teck has developed employee-driven 

initiatives, a Zinc & Health quarterly 

newsletter, and is active on social media 

networks such as Twitter and Facebook. 

Since 2011, Teck has partnered with Free 

The Children as a proud sponsor of We 

Day, a national event that encourages 

young people to take action on local 

and global issues to make the world a 

better place. In 2012, Teck launched 

One Tweet, One Life, a Twitter campaign 

that saw the company donate $0.50 

to Zinc Saves Kids for every retweet 

of its We Day message. The campaign 

reached more than 5 million Twitter 

users and received 22,640 retweets. In 

2013, Teck launched a Send One, Save 

One e-postcard campaign. For every 

e-postcard sent, Teck donated $0.50 

to UNICEF – the cost of a life-saving 

zinc treatment. To date, nearly 3,000 

e-postcards have been sent to recipients 

in 94 countries around the world. 

Food fortification 

Fortifying staple foods such as flour, rice, 

and milk with zinc and other essential 

micronutrients is a highly cost-effective 

measure for reducing widespread micronutrient 

deficiencies. At the World 

Economic Forum in January 2012, Teck 

announced a three-year agreement with 

the chemical company BASF to jointly 

develop affordable zinc fortification solutions, 

with the goal of reducing zinc 

deficiency in developing countries. 

aBOut teCK 

Teck is a diversified resource 

company committed to responsible 

mining and mineral development 

with major business units focused 

on zinc, copper, steelmaking coal, 

and energy. The pursuit of sustainability 

guides Teck’s approach 

to business. Based in Vancouver, 

Canada, the company is building 

partnerships and capacity to 

address sustainability challenges 

within the regions in which it operates 

and at the global level. 

To date, the Teck BASF partnership has 

provided some 35 million people at risk 

of zinc deficiency with access to zincfortified 

staple foods. Additionally, the 

partners have developed a zinc test kit, 

“iCheck,” to determine the zinc levels in 

staple foods and premixes. The portable, 

easy-to-use zinc test kit allows local 

producers to prove the nutritional content 

of their food, increasing program 

sustainability and reliability. 

Crop nutrition 

Zinc deficiency affects more than half 

of the world’s agricultural soils. It has a 

significant impact on crop productivity 

and may contribute to zinc deficiency 

among humans. Adding zinc to fertilizers 

has been demonstrated to increase 

crop yields, food security, and nutritional 

quality. 

In 2012, Teck signed a two-year sponsorship 

agreement with the National Agricultural 

Technology Extension Service 

Center of the Ministry of Agriculture of 

China (NATESC) to expand the use of zinc 

fertilizers. NATESC has been working 

with the International Zinc Association 

to conduct more than 40 field trials 

in China as well as promotional and 

education programs, including national 

workshops and training courses. The 

trials have resulted in increased crop 

yields, ranging from 3 percent to 40 

percent and a value-cost ratio as high 

as 5 to 15 times for farmers. 

To learn more about Teck’s Zinc & Health 

program, please visit: www.zincsaveslives.com 


91

teLIa SOnera 

FreeDOm OF 

eXPreSSIOn 

By Patrik Hiselius, TeliaSonera 

Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right 

derived from the inherent dignity of all persons. 

Surveillance 

Government monitoring or blocking or 

take-down requests often serve a legitimate 

purpose, including protecting human 

rights. However, there are also major 

government requests that are “problematic” 

and might conflict with freedom of 

expression and privacy. TeliaSonera may 

be legally required to comply with such 

requests and, like other telecommunications 

companies, only have limited leverage 

with which to investigate, challenge, 

or reject such requests. In some countries, 

this dilemma places TeliaSonera 

at a heightened risk of being linked to 

severe human rights abuses. These risks 

are further heightened in relationships 

with state entities and the fact that major 

requests often are strictly confidential. 

Useful information on surveillance 

of communications 

Freedom of expression and privacy are 

the most material human rights risks 

in telecommunications. The main risks 

include complicity in human rights violations 

following excessive governmental 

requests, which are to the detriment of 

freedom of expression and privacy. International 

standards on human rights 

go beyond identifying and managing 

material risks to TeliaSonera itself – they 

relate to the risks to individuals. 

TeliaSonera’s Board of Directors adopted 

a Group Policy on Freedom of Expression 

in Telecommunications in December 

2013. The primary purposes of this policy 

are to reduce human rights risks and to 

ensure that our customers feel confident 

that TeliaSonera will, whenever possible, 

respect and safeguard their freedom of 

expression when we receive requests 

or demands from governments in relation 

to requests or demands that have 

potentially serious impacts on freedom of 

expression in telecommunications. The 

policy is – to the best of our knowledge 

– the most far-reaching policy of its kind 

in the industry. 

Governments and authorities (e.g., police, 

security authorities, customs officials, 

etc.) conduct various types of communications 

surveillance (e.g., calls, SMS, 

e-mail, web surfing) by imposing obligations 

on telecommunications companies 

in connection with criminal investigations 

and national security issues. 

Government surveillance of communications 

can be classified into general 

categories, such as: 

1. requests from law enforcement authorities: 

• real-time access to the content of communications 

(e.g., listening in to voice 

calls) and access to historical content (e.g., 

checking what was written in an SMS); 


Good Practice 

Human rights 

• real-time access to traffic data (e.g., 

checking who is calling whom, when, 

and for how long); 

• access to historical traffic data that the 

provider has stored or retained (e.g., 

checking who has called whom, when, 

and for how long); 

• access to subscription data that the 

provider has stored or retained (e.g., 

checking who is the subscriber of a 

certain telephone number); 

• access to location information, that is, 

access to information on the location 

of mobile terminals / phones (e.g., from 

which block in the city is a call made). 

2. signals intelligence, that is, intelligence-gathering 

through analysis 

and processing of communication 

signals (e.g., the National Defence 

Radio Establishment in Sweden); 

3. real-time access without requests; 

technical systems for more extensive 

monitoring of telecommunications 

(e.g., mass surveillance by national 

security authorities); 

4. shutting down, blocking, or restricting 

access (e.g., shutdown of SMS 

communications; blocking access to 

the internet or to certain websites). 

“Major requests or demands” 

The policy defines TeliaSonera’s commitments 

in relation to requests or demands 

with potentially serious impacts on freedom 

of expression in telecommunications. 

Such requests or demands are distinct 

from normal “uncontroversial” routine 

requests for lawful, targeted surveillance. 

Lawful, targeted surveillance includes 

requests for TeliaSonera to provide details 

of specific customers’ communications, 

usually historic communications metadata, 

traffic data, location data, and / or 

content. Those requests form part of many 

investigations made by law enforcement 

authorities in criminal cases. 

“Major requests or demands” addressed 

to TeliaSonera, covered by the policy, 

may relate to: 

• targeted surveillance in exceptional 

cases; 

• mass surveillance, in which the authorities 

demand unrestricted real-time 

network access; 

• shutdown of an entire network, or parts 

thereof; 

• blocking or restricting access to specific 

services, internet websites, or content; 

• blocking or restricting individual customers’ 

access to services or networks; 

• obligations to transmit mandatory communications 

issued by government 

authorities; 

• proposals for new laws or imposition 

of significant operational changes. 

Important elements in the 

TeliaSonera policy 

All companies in TeliaSonera shall adopt 

a “point of challenge” and make careful 

As a leading provider of telecommunication services, 

TeliaSonera is a vital part of the social and economic infrastructure 

in the markets where we operate. TeliaSonera 

provides tools and services that can significantly promote 

freedom of expression, even in countries where such freedoms 

are so far limited. 

However, these tools and services are subjects to legislative, 

administrative, license, or law enforcement requirements, to 

which we are obliged to adhere, but which may impact an 

individual’s freedom of expression. This is why we adopted 

this policy. Johan Dennelind, CEO and President, TeliaSonera 

assessments of all major requests and 

demands that may impact the freedom 

of expression. The assessments include, 

to the extent relevant: 

• a legal assessment; 

• an assessment to determine if the request 

or demand could have serious 

impacts on freedom of expression; 

• an assessment on how to interpret the 

demand as specifically (narrowly) as 

possible; 

• a business-impact assessment (e.g., risk 

of license, company assets, reputation); 

• an assessment of any risks to the safety 

and liberty of company personnel. 

A strict escalation procedure for decision 

making is put in place to follow the 

policy. Formal decisions on the extent 

of compliance or refusal to comply with 

problematic requests or demands shall 

not be made at the local company level, 

unless there are exceptional reasons. 

We are aware of the fact that our power to 

ensure freedom of expression in markets 

where we operate is limited. We can make 

a long-lasting difference only by working 

together with our industry peers. In 2011 

TeliaSonera helped form an initiative, the 

“Telecommunications Industry Dialogue 

on Freedom of Expression and Privacy,” 

in which a number of the industry’s 

leading companies have taken part. The 

freedom of expression policy TeliaSonera 

has adopted is largely the result of learnings 

in context of this initiative. 

The latest version of the TeliaSonera 

Group Policy on Freedom of Expression 

in Telecommunications is available at 

www.teliasonera.com. 

We have the same interests 

as our users 

With the new policy in place, we are 

better equipped to promote freedom 

of expression in all markets where we 

operate. We believe this is in and of itself 

a good thing for our customers, and for 

us as a company. After all, we are in 

the business of providing the means for 

people to express themselves. 


93

tranSaerO aIrLIneS 

ImPrOvInG tHe QuaLItY OF 

LIFe FOr DISaBLeD PeOPLe 

Disabled passengers want to travel and wish to do it on their own. “Our objective is to guarantee 

them their respective right and to do our best to ensure their safety and convenience 

when using air transport. This is a comprehensive objective. It is important to combine the 

efforts of business, the state, and the non-commercial sector to create a barrier-free environment 

for disabled passengers, for whom it is of crucial importance,” says Olga Pleshakova, 

Chief Executive Officer, Transaero Airlines. 

By Elena Zhuravleva, Transaero Airlines 

According to the Ministry of Health and 

Social Development of the Russian Federation, 

there are almost 14.5 million 

disabled people in Russia, equaling a 

tenth of the country’s population. That 

means that the problems of disabled 

people concern every fourth family. 

In the Russian capital alone, there are 

1.2 million disabled people, and most of 

them are young with active lives. The 

low level of accessibility to transport for 

disabled people is a serious problem that 

relates not only to the issue of limited 

mobility, but also to the ability of people 

to live full lives. The development 

of products and services for disabled 

people allows the airline to expand this 

service offering to other passenger categories 

with special needs, for example 

the elderly and parents with children. 

Transaero Airlines considers tackling 

the issues that relate to the mobility of 

disabled people as its priority, both in 

terms of service quality and its social 

policies. 

Since 2008, Transaero has been implementing 

a comprehensive social program, 

the key purposes of which are to 

contribute toward improving the quality 

of life of disabled people, enhancing 

accessibility to transport, and creating 

barrier-free environments for disabled 

passengers. 

Objectives 

When implementing the program, 

Transaero Airlines set the following 

objectives: 

• create the maximum level of comfort 

for independent travelers with disabilities; 

• establish close partnerships with public 

associations for disabled people to appraise 

and improve the standards of 

service; 

• establish a system of monitoring and 

feedback by engaging disabled passengers 

who have used the company’s 

services; 

• arrange an information campaign to 

draw public attention to disabled people’s 

problems; 

• facilitate independent traveling and 

tourism for disabled clients. 


Good Practice 

Human rights 

Key measures 

When implementing this program, 

Transaero takes a comprehensive approach 

that includes the following 

principles. 

1. Transport accessibility 

This area is directly related to services 

provided by airlines for disabled passengers. 

In order to improve the services 

provided for passengers with disabilities, 

Transaero has purchased expensive 

equipment, for example unique 

aviation beds for transporting bedridden 

patients with severe conditions. To 

maintain this equipment, Transaero 

sends its technicians along on the flight, 

with all expenses covered by the airline. 

In addition, the company provides 

disabled passengers with special wheelchairs, 

enabling them to move about 

in the cabin on all types of company 

aircraft. 

Transaero actively implements advanced 

technologies to facilitate traveling for 

disabled people (mobile check-in, selfservice 

check-in, etc.). Transaero also 

engages its business partners in tackling 

the transport accessibility problems 

of disabled people. In 2011, Transaero 

and Moscow Domodedovo airport developed 

a corporate standard of service 

for disabled people. The standard sets 

forth general principles of service that 

are offered to disabled people and describes 

the travel technology for this 

special category of air passenger. The 

standard envisages a mandatory program 

for training and upgrading the skills of 

the airline’s and the airport’s staff when 

servicing disabled people. 

2. Employee training 

All aviation specialists have to attend 

the trainings in customer service and 

the technologies of transportation used 

for people with disabilities. The training 

courses meet international standards; 

they use special methodology and training 

software. 

With the support of experts from 

Perspektiva, a disabled people’s organization, 

the company holds special trainings 

and seminars for the staff to establish 

proper communication with clients 

with various disabilities. These trainings 

are attended not only by Transaero staff 

but by the staff of the airport and partner 

companies as well. 

Trainings are usually arranged in the 

Transaero Aviation Training Center. However, 

on occasion they are conducted 

off-site. 

• In anticipation of the Paralympic 

Games, Transaero organized trainings 

at Sochi International Airport for the 

airport staff and the company’s local 

employees. 

• In April 2014, Transaero organized the 

trainings for Pulkovo International 

Airport staff in the brand new Pulkovo 

Terminal, which has a dedicated space 

for Special Assistance, where travelers 

with special needs can comfortably wait 

for their flights. 

3. Information campaign 

The information campaign includes 

distributing information booklets on 

services for disabled people – the target 

audience being both the staff and passengers 

traveling with Transaero. Transaero 

seeks to provide disabled people with 

information and the best ways to use 

it through websites, sale offices, and 

recommendations for disabled travelers. 

Cooperation with Perspektiva focuses on 

still another important area – operation 

of the Business Advisory Board on 

Disability, which is a unique institution 

for Russia. The Board includes Russian 

and international companies. The Board 

is supported by Perspektiva and works 

on matters relating to the adaptation of 

services provided by various companies 

for disabled clients, the employment 

of disabled persons, and other important 

social aspects. The participation 

of Transaero in the Business Advisory 

Board on Disability enables it to draw 

on experiences of civil aviation partners 

and colleagues. The cooperation with 

Perspektiva is also very instrumental for 

Transaero in terms of expert appraisal. 

4. Charity programs 

Transaero regularly supports social, cultural, 

and sports events for disabled people. 

As a part of its support for sports involving 

disabled persons, Transaero provides transportation 

during some sporting events, 

including for the Special Olympic Games, 

Paralympic Games, the wheelchair dance 

sportsmen, and the annual Dance-a-thon 

event (organized by Best Buddies Russia). 

Moreover, since 2007, Transaero has been 

implementing a global Back to the Future 

program dedicated to healthcare assistance 

for seriously ill children (treatment 

and rehabilitation of disabled children 

with cancer). Since the launch of the Back 

to the Future program, more than 2,000 

disabled children have been transported 

for medical care purposes, and 1,000 

children have undergone rehabilitation 

programs. 

Company overview 

Transaero Airlines is the second-largest 

passenger airline in Russia. Transaero 

launched its services in November, 1991. 

Its fleet consists of 99 aircrafts and it 

has the largest long-haul aircraft fleet 

in Russia, the CIS, and Eastern Europe. 

Transaero serves more than 200 routes 

in Russia, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the 

Americas. The team of Transaero consists 

of over 11,500 employees. 


95

YüKSeL 

COrPOrate PHILantHrOPY 

By Deniz Sazak, Yüksel 

Athletics is not as popular as soccer or basketball in Turkey. Therefore, even though there 

are many promising Turkish young athletes, finding sponsorships for athletics is not easy. 

The Yılmaz Sazak International Athletics Meetings (YSIAM) have been organized now for 

18 years under the main sponsorship of Yüksel. In parallel with Yüksel’s environmental 

sustainability strategy, the YSIAM is the first carbon-neutral track-and-field organization in 

Europe. The organization of the Meetings by Yüksel includes the integration of philanthropy 

into management processes and business activities. Corporate volunteering is achieved by 

the employees of Yüksel, who work for the Meetings to contribute to athletics in Turkey. 

Yüksel attaches great importance to 

creating a reputation that focuses on 

corporate responsibility. This is proven 

by being the leading – and the first – 

company in the construction sector to 

participate in the UN Global Compact, 

publishing a Global Reporting Initiative 

(GRI)-based sustainability report, having 

an ethical code of conduct, and measuring 

its carbon footprint. 

Apart from strategic social investments, 

Yüksel also engages with philanthropic 

organizations. As a contractor company, 

Yüksel mostly prefers to make contributions 

for projects that are related to its 

core business. However, as a contractor, 

it is not easy to find core business-related 

projects. For this reason, Yüksel prefers 

to support the fields that are important 

to national assets and that are not supported 

sufficiently by the government 

or other private companies. Athletics 

is one of them. 

Yılmaz Sazak International Athletics 

Meetings 

It is commonly known that athletics is 

not as popular as soccer or basketball 

in most countries. This is no different 

in Turkey. As a result of the low level 

of popularity of athletics, private sector 

companies usually do not choose to provide 

financial support for track and field. 

Yılmaz Sazak, one of the founding partners 

of Yüksel Holding, made the decision 

to popularize this sport with the Turkish 

public and to support athletes with personal 

contributions. Sazak, who personally 

provided sponsorship for athletes, 

started to organize Yılmaz Sazak Age 

Groups Indoors Meetings in 1996 to provide 

wide-ranging support for athletics 

in Turkey. The athletes in the age groups 

of 12–13, 14–15, and 16–17 need to 

feel worthy and know that there are valid 


Good Practice 

Human rights 

coaches who have attracted attention 

with their successes during the YSIAM. 

Currently, three young athletes – Emel 

Dereli, Pınar Aday, and Nimet Karakuş – 

are involved in the Rising Stars project. 

Besides financial help, they also receive 

support from the corporation, which 

increases their self-esteem and motivation. 

Their record-breaking achievements 

are the concrete results of this support. 

Reflection of sustainability strategy 

reasons for continuing to participate in 

track and field. They need motivation 

as well as financial and moral support. 

The meetings became international in 

1999. In three years, there were nine 

participating countries and the meetings 

started to be held outdoors, allowing 

the organization to reach more people. 

The YSIAM have been organized now 

for 18 years under the main sponsorship 

of Yüksel. 

Beyond donations 

The organization of the Meetings by 

Yüksel includes the integration of philanthropy 

into management processes 

and business activities. The Corporate 

Communications Department (CCD) of 

Yüksel is involved in each phase. The 

ultimate goal of this extra support is to 

make the Meetings as attractive as possible 

for the foreign participants. Having 

more foreign participants leads to a 

better chance of young Turkish athletes 

competing on an international platform. 

Additionally, if foreign participants increase, 

press interest also increases. 

Yüksel is aware of the media’s crucial role 

in increasing the popularity of athletics. 

In order to motivate the press to support 

athletics, Yüksel conducted an awards project 

for five years called the Kenan Onuk 

Special Athletics Award. The award was 

provided by Yüksel, the awards ceremony 

was organized by Yüksel’s CCD, and it 

took place in Yüksel’s Recreation Center. 

Another project has emerged from 

Yüksel’s efforts to increase the popularity 

of athletics in Turkey – a project 

that brings arts and sports together. 

During the Meetings, a professional 

photography team takes snapshots of 

the athletes and the spectators during 

the most interesting moments, capturing 

their expressions of excitement, ambition, 

pride, as well as disappointment 

and exhaustion. Yüksel organizes an annual 

exhibition with these photographs 

called the Yılmaz Sazak Photography 

Exhibition. The exhibition takes place 

in Yüksel’s Recreation Center and is 

free of charge. For Yüksel’s 50th Year 

Celebrations in 2013, CCD held exhibitions 

of these photos in Turkey’s most 

crowded airports: İstanbul Atatürk, 

Ankara Esenboğa, and İzmir Adnan 

Menderes. The exhibitions contribute 

toward increasing the motivation of 

young athletes who attend the Meetings. 

When athletes view themselves in these 

photos at the exhibitions, the Meetings 

become more meaningful for them. 

Yüksel achieves corporate volunteering 

through the YSIAM. In terms of corporate 

citizenship, Yüksel has provided a personal 

sponsorship program since 2007, 

called Rising Stars, for athletes and their 

The environmental sustainability strategy 

of the company directly affects the 

YSIAM, which has been carbon neutral 

since 2012. In this sense, the YSIAM is 

the first carbon-neutral athletics organization 

in Europe. The carbon emissions 

released are balanced with carbon credits 

taken from the Gold Standard projects. 

FaCtS OF YüKSeL 

• Yüksel was founded in 1963 in 

ankara. Since 1983, Yüksel has 

continued with its international 

activities, and since 2007, it has 

earned a place among “the 

World’s 225 Largest International 

Contractors.” 

• Yüksel has been a participant of 

the un Global Compact since 

2006. 

• Yüksel took an active role by 

joining the un Global Compact 

network turkey Board of 

Directors in 2013. 

• Yüksel is the first contractor 

company in the turkish 

construction sector that 

measures its carbon footprint. 

• Yüksel is the first contractor 

company in the turkish 

construction sector that has 

been publishing a GrI-based 

sustainability report since 2011. 


97

aDeCCO GrOuP 

taKInG Our ‘WaY tO WOrK’ 

OntO tHe StreetS 

As global attention intensifies on the rising tide of unemployment – and above all on youth 

unemployment – Adecco, the world’s leading provider of HR solutions, took decisive action. 

On April 30, 2013, more than 10,000 employees in 50 countries mobilized and offered their 

expertise as part of the multifaceted Adecco Way to Work program. It is designed to provide 

practical and inspirational support to a generation at risk of exclusion from the world of work. 

Street Days, an online career center, coaching events, and an innovative work experience 

contest reached more than 500,000 young people. 

By Lilian Furrer, Adecco Group 

provide real-life insights into the world 

of work and its requirements. We must 

help unlock their potential and give them 

a perspective. We cannot risk losing a 

whole generation.” 

The Street Day strategy 

According to the International Labour 

Organization, some 74.5 million of the 

almost 202 million unemployed in 2013 

were young people aged between 15 and 

24. That is almost one million more than 

in the previous year. There is a growing 

consensus that the causes go beyond the 

economic crisis and are due in part to a 

skills mismatch – hard and soft skills 

of young people are not attuned to the 

demands of the new global knowledge 

economy. Adecco research suggests that 

54 percent of unemployed young people 

adecco Group CeO Patrick De maeseneire 

in action during the Street Day in Belgium. 

feel they need more support and help 

in their efforts to find a job. 

A global issue needs global action 

Launching the initiative, Adecco Group 

CEO Patrick De Maeseneire said: “We 

believe the current youth unemployment 

situation is economically and morally 

unacceptable. Through the Adecco Way 

to Work program, we want to make 

Adecco’s leading recruitment expertise 

more accessible to young job seekers and 

The centerpiece of the Adecco Way to 

Work program was the Street Day on 

April 30, 2013. Adecco employees were 

involved in more than 1,000 activities 

in high-traffic public areas and visited 

schools and universities. In addition, more 

than 2,000 branches opened their doors 

to offer career advice. In total, more than 

20,000 coaching sessions were held and 

the Adecco Way to Work website registered 

a million visitors to its coaching 

resources. 

The synergistic approach made a big impact, 

exemplified by the reaction of Adecco 

Greece’s Country Manager, Konstantinos 

Milonas: “In Adecco Greece we opened our 

branches and approached our candidates 

to help them make their next career steps 

successful in any way we can. We have 

the know-how and want to offer it to all 

these young people who are trying to 

98 


Good Practice 


Patrick De Maeseneire concluded: “Young 

people must be willing to learn languages, 

work abroad, and show a cando 

attitude – all are crucial to seizing 

opportunities on today’s job market. My 

sincere thanks to our clients around the 

globe who supported this initiative by 

providing such a varied and enriching 

range of jobs for our winners.” 

adecco Greece employees on the 

streets, explaining the purpose of the 

adecco Way to Work Street Day. 

start up their careers. The labor market 

in Greece is currently one of the toughest 

and people looking for a job really need 

to acquire skills to become competitive 

in this environment. We are honored to 

have the opportunity to lend a hand.” 

The long-term value of such actions has 

reverberated to local and national business 

communities. For example, in Australia, 

the New South Wales Business Chamber 

CEO, Stephen Cartwright, remarked: “Too 

little is being done to support students 

entering the workforce. It is well known 

that prolonged disengagement from the 

labor market at an early age has very 

negative consequences for individuals 

through the course of their working lives.” 

The Street Day is a symbolic act that can 

only inspire concerted action from governments, 

businesses, and individuals alike. 

More flexible labor markets, reform of 

education systems, and young people’s 

willingness to accept temporary job assignments 

or job opportunities abroad 

are essential requisites to overcome the 

current job crisis. 

Coaching as a catalyst 

Although nothing beats face-to-face advice, 

online access and support to the 

digital generation has been available 

through the Adecco Way to Work online 

‘Career Center’ and its Facebook 

pages. These resources are visited by 

thousands of young job seekers, eager to 

learn how to improve their employability. 

It is a one-stop-shop that includes: tips 

and tools for a compelling CV and how to 

use it as a marketing tool; how to write 

cover letters or e-mails; job interview 

preparation; as well as advice on how to 

create a professional social media profile. 

The resources are accessible in various 

languages and adapted to the varying 

requirements in different countries that 

job markets demand from applicants. 

The work experience contest – 

job journeys across five continents 

Dreams are what futures are made of. 

As part of the Adecco Way to Work 

program, a competition was launched 

to fire the work spirit and motivation 

of young people aspiring to build better 

futures for themselves. The nine winners, 

selected from more than 23,500 contestants, 

received a unique opportunity to 

experience the world of work in a diverse, 

international way. Adecco designed “job 

journeys” across five continents that provided 

the winners from France, the United 

States, Japan, Germany, Spain, Italy, 

Australia, and New Zealand with a taste 

of a wide variety of jobs and companies. 

The nine youngsters were encouraged 

to share their experiences and journeys 

via a blog with family, friends, Adecco 

employees, and the broader public. 

In total 46 Adecco clients in 49 countries 

bought in to the Adecco Way to Work 

program and were willing and eager to 

give these young job seekers a unique 

experience and an insight into their 

businesses. Andri Bodmer, HR Director 

of the five star hotel Dolder Grand in 

Zurich, said: “It is of utmost importance 

to acquire work experience as early as 

possible, especially in order to develop 

the soft skills crucial in any business in 

which personal or client relations are 

essential.” 

As they traveled around the world, the 

job experience winners had much to 

share with their peers. Federico Sattanino 

from Italy offered this advice: 

“Don’t believe anyone who tells you 

that there are no jobs out there. There 

are, but we need to broaden our horizons 

and look a bit further afield.” 

Imane Krirat from Germany wrote: “I’ve 

learned that there are doors that could 

be opened… And one thing I know for 

sure is that this trip not only expanded 

my horizon but also added an important 

message to my CV!” 

There is a whole generation at risk of exclusion 

from the world of work. Adecco 

took action by reaching out to more than 

half a million young people all over the 

world. The purpose was to give them 

back their dreams and to let them know 

that they are not a lost but a loved generation. 

With the scale and intensity of 

engagement that Way to Work reached 

in 2013, Adecco aims to help more than 

one million young people find their way 

to work in 2014. 

www.adeccowaytowork.com 

www.facebook.com/AdeccoWayToWork 


auDI 

aCHIevInG SuStaInaBLe 

eDuCatIOn 

By Dr.-Ing. Peter F. Tropschuh, Dr. Antonia Wadé, and Martina Biendl, AuDI AG 

The UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development that is currently underway aims to 

offer all people the opportunity to achieve a worthwhile future while also integrating knowledge 

about sustainability into the education environment. Education also plays an important 

role for businesses, since their success is based on having well-trained, highly qualified, and 

skilled employees. As part of its corporate responsibility strategy, AUDI AG therefore invests 

at all levels in the training and advancement of its employees, expands the range of education 

in the regions surrounding its corporate sites, and works to help underperforming and socially 

disadvantaged students. To put the strategic mission “We live responsibility” into practice, 

Audi also trains its employees specifically on the issue of sustainability. 

Sustainability is anchored as a fundamental 

goal in Audi’s corporate strategy. In 

order to make employees aware of this 

issue as early as possible, the company 

begins with the apprentices and fosters 

their understanding of corporate responsibility 

by taking an integrated approach. 

Work, social, and self-learning skills 

are strengthened at a personal level so 

that apprentices are capable of lifelong 

learning. At the specialist level, essential 

aspects of sustainability are added: Apprentices 

are given information about 

the most important CO 2 

leverage effects 

within the car and in production; the 

possibilities of alternative drive technologies; 

and the requirements that result 

from climate change, the urbanization 

of living spaces, and the age structure of 

the society. In a pilot project that begins 

in the 2014 training year, the company 

wants to integrate theoretical knowledge 

of sustainability into its training as a 

fixed component, and along with this, to 

systematically prepare young employees 

for the economic, ecological, and social 

challenges facing the company. 

Successful dual training model 

“Dual” vocational training, in which students 

simultaneously receive training 

within a company and at a public vocational 

school, is common in Germany. 

Audi also offers the option of combining 

additional degrees with practical 

training that are officially recognized, 

including the acquisition of a technical 

school-leaving diploma (Fachabitur) or 

a Bachelor of Engineering, for instance. 

100 


Good Practice 


The success of the dual training model has 

motivated Audi to establish this model at 

its international sites as well. For example, 

Audi México in San José Chiapa has 

already begun providing dual training 

to young, skilled employees, three years 

before the opening of the new plant in 

2016. There are currently 110 Mexican 

apprentices who are trained to become 

mechanics or mechatronics engineers 

based on the time-tested German vocational 

training system. For more than 

10 years now, Audi Hungaria has been 

training employees in Győr, Hungary, in 

what now amount to 13 different vocations; 

dual training has been offered here 

since 2011. Audi was also the first German 

manufacturer to bring the dual training 

system to China. Today the company 

cooperates with nine vocational schools 

and other German car manufacturers. 

Dual training is currently in the pilot 

phase at the Brussels site. Audi is the very 

first industrial company there to offer 

this form of vocational training. For apprentices 

at the international Audi sites, 

the combination of sound practical training 

with a strong theoretical framework 

opens up completely new job prospects. 

Cooperation with universities 

Audi also places a high priority on linking 

theory and practice in university 

education. This is why Audi offers the 

possibility for dual studies at its sites in 

Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm. The company 

has been cooperating since 1998 in the 

“StEP” (Studies and Experience in Practice) 

program with the Ingolstadt University of 

Applied Sciences, and since 1999 with the 

Baden-Württemberg Cooperative State 

University. The content of the courses is 

continuously updated and adapted to new 

developments. As a result, changes in the 

German energy landscape in 2012 led to 

a course of studies in “Technologies for 

renewable energies,” which was added to 

the course offerings in the StEP program. 

The goal of the “Entrepreneurial activity, 

global responsibility and sustainability” 

chair, endowed by Audi, is to firmly 

embed sustainability within university 

education, going beyond the automotive 

core competence. Audi founded the 

chair in 2013 at Zeppelin University in 

Friedrichshafen, Germany, at the European 

Center for Sustainability Research. 

Audi is also entering into strategic partnerships 

with universities in order to 

accelerate knowledge-transfer between 

research institutions and industry. Currently, 

Audi is cooperating with 13 partner 

universities. About 140 doctoral 

candidates are now working toward their 

degrees in research projects financed by 

Audi, and more than 120 Audi employees 

are involved in university education. 

Supporting disadvantaged children 

and youth 

Audi is giving a chance to job-seeking 

young people who have not found apprenticeships 

and helping them make up 

their academic deficits and boost their 

social skills. With its job-entry qualification 

program (EQ) and a support year, 

Audi and the employment agency offer 

these young people prospects for the 

future. In one year, the young participants 

acquire basic technical skills, are 

integrated into the working world, and 

develop personally. This increases their 

chances of getting a job with Audi or in 

another company. 

In addition, Audi wants to give children 

and youth with difficult starting conditions 

equal opportunities and is therefore 

supporting Germany’s first public “Profile 

School” in Ingolstadt. The model project, 

which is the first of its kind in Germany, 

will help gifted children and youth who 

have had a difficult start in life – but 

who are eager to learn – to attain their 

German high-school leaving certificate 

(Abitur). The school offers ideal learning 

conditions: Learning and break periods 

are alternated during the full-day instruction; 

in the afternoons, the students 

work in small groups to go through what 

they have learned in lessons in greater 

depth. In addition, an individual plan for 

supporting each child is created in consultation 

with the teachers. This plan is 

tailored precisely to the talents and needs 

of each individual child and is made up of 

10 learning segments. Social education 

workers and voluntary mentors supervise 

the special classes at a college preparatory 

high school and an elementary school 

in Ingolstadt. The cooperative project 

involving Audi, the state government of 

Bavaria, the city of Ingolstadt, and the 

Roland Berger Foundation was launched 

for the 2014 / 2015 school year with two 

“forerunner” classes of up to 18 students. 

Audi will support the Profile School long 

term with up to € 1 million per year. 

With its job-entry qualification program, 

the support year, and the Profile School, 

Audi is working to promote educational 

equality in Germany. The Audi Group 

has also made the promotion of education 

within the company environment a 

global focus of its social support guidelines. 


COPeInCa 

PartICIPatOrY 

COmmunICatIOn WItH 

emPLOYeeS 

By Pierina Amayo, Copeinca 

CFG Investment and COPEINCA are Peruvian fishing companies that belong to the Pacific 

Andes Group. They are engaged in the extraction, processing, and production of fishmeal 

and fish oil for indirect human consumption. Also, they aim for direct human consumption 

through the production of canned mackerel and anchovy. Since september 2013 the integration 

process of these companies started and in the near future we expect to conclude this 

fusion process. Both companies are committed to sustainable development as a smart way to 

do business, considering that to ensure sustainability is an essential requirement to ensure 

that ethical principles, respect for people and the environment meet the challenges of acting 

on social responsibility and environmental, the Millennium Development Goals and Global 

Compact principles. 

Communication is a critical and powerful 

factor for generating a good work 

environment, which can be decisive 

for the development of an organization. 

Acting on this conviction, COPEINCA 

and CFG Investment have implemented 

policies and programs that allow for the 

establishment of effective communication 

with their employees. The results 

so far have been satisfactory. 

within the company’s communication 

and good corporate governance guidelines. 

Since its creation, good results 

have been reported regarding the control 

of practices that are not in line with 

the corporate culture. 

Anonymous Communication Line 

In 2011, the company created the Anonymous 

Communication Line in order to develop 

a communication channel through 

which employees, clients, and suppliers 

could express themselves, thereby promoting 

a good work environment and 

controlling and preventing bad practices. 

This communication line is one of the 

practices that has been implemented 

102 


Good Practice 


Anonymous Channel statistic report 

20 

18 

15 

15 

12 

10 

8 

6 

4 

5 

3 

2 

0 

Head Office Plants Fleet 

2011 2012 2013 

4 

With this program, employees’ improvement 

suggestions are listened to, assessed, 

and implemented when necessary, which 

generates savings, process efficiencies, 

and accident and environmental-impact 

prevention. 

Objectives of the program 

• Motivate employees to look for improvements 

in their processes. 

• Channel and implement improvement 

suggestions in the interest of employees 

and the company. 

• Commit employees to continuous improvement. 

• Have personnel trained in the use of 

quality tools. 

This communication line originated from 

the company’s code of conduct, which defines 

the behavior that is expected from 

all members of the organization and 

includes the following topics: behavior 

based on mutual respect; equal opportunity; 

diligence duty; prohibition of toxic 

substance use; respect and protection of 

confidential information; prevention of 

conflicts of interest; the good use and 

safeguarding of files; legal compliance; 

behavior with respect to bribes, gifts, and 

favors; occupational safety and health; 

environment; social responsibility; and 

fulfillment of obligations. 

It is available 24/7 and is accessed through 

the internet. Every complaint received is 

analyzed confidentially by management 

and Internal Audit employees, who define 

which steps are to be taken, in accordance 

with the seriousness of the situation. 

Fishing Ideas 

Employees are an important source of 

good ideas, since they are working every 

day to identify opportunities for improvement. 

In order to gather all their suggestions 

in an orderly manner, the company 

created the Fishing Ideas program. 

Statistics (indicator of received and 

implemented suggestions): 

• Received suggestions: 449 

• Implemented suggestions: 18 

• Under implementation: 127 

• Under feasibility assessment: 7 

To develop this program, the company 

uses all of its communication channels 

so that the message reaches all levels of 

the organization, thereby motivating 

employees to believe in themselves, trust 

in their abilities, and contribute toward 

continuous improvement. 


PervOrmanCe InternatIOnaL 

ImPrOve QuaLItY OF WOrK 

anD LIFe DeSPIte tHe Heat 

E.COOLINE protects workers from heat, improves quality of life for people, and even enhances 

performance in sports. The need for active heat protection is growing because forecasts predict 

more heat waves because of climate change. This not only affects the environment but also 

millions of people around the world who suffer from heat at work, while playing sports, and 

in their daily lives. 

By Gabriele Renner, pervormance international 

international 

In 2008 the report of the German national 

workers association (BauA) showed 

that 10 percent of the working population 

suffers from heat. Most of the questions 

addressed to the association were 

about solutions for climate problems. 

In the heat wave of 2003, more than 

35,000 people died and many people 

had severe problems with their health. 

From a medical point of view, this is 

not surprising. Human beings have a 

core body temperature of 37 °C (98.6 °F), 

whereby all processes of the body run 

perfectly. With 38 °C (100.4 °F), the 

problems occur: People do not feel well 

Accident figures 

35 % 

30 % 

25 % 

20 % 

15 % 

10 % 

5 % 

0 % 

27 °C 32 °C 37 °C 

Temperature 

anymore, they lose concentration, and 

performance deteriorates. With 39 °C 

(102.2 °F), people suffer from fevers. 

More than 40 °C (104.4 °F) and lives are 

endangered. 

Furthermore, people with higher core 

body temperatures – even if only sweating 

– have much higher pulse rates. High 

temperatures represent a high risk factor 

for developing cardiac disease. Older people 

and people who suffer more from heat 

because of their extreme working conditions 

are affected by cardiac problems. 

With hot temperatures, the productivity 

of people – and therefore the productivity 

of companies – is also affected. The 

Kiel Institute for the World Economy 

reports that 12 percent of productivity is 

lost on hot days, meaning climate change 

is also responsible for economic losses. 

The performance of sports players declines 

in heat. There is discussion on 

whether the FIFA World Cup can be held 

in Qatar in 2022 because of the heat – 

everybody knows that playing sports in 

the heat creates problems. 

Knowing this, many people, states, and 

companies install air conditioning systems 

to reduce temperatures – mostly 

in buildings. The problem is that air 

conditioning systems need lots of energy. 

According to scientific explanations 

on the reasons for climate change, this 

means that CO 2 

production increases 

dramatically, which leads to a vicious 

cycle. Consequently, the world beats 

the heat with larger emission amounts, 

which leads to more dramatic negative 

impacts on the environment. 

To stop this disastrous development, 

new and innovative cooling systems are 

required. One innovative possibility for 

cooling human beings in hot conditions 

is cooling apparel – leading to more 

effectiveness and lower energy consumption. 

By using cooling apparel instead of 

air conditioning systems, there are fewer 

greenhouse gases emissions. 

Cooling apparel is not only climate-friendly 

but highly effective. It works on the 

natural physical principle of evaporation 

of water and uses the high temperatures 

in the surroundings to cool the body. The 

reduction of heat on the skin can be up to 

12 °C, which makes life and work much 

more comfortable. In studies of patients 

suffering from heat stress, even the core 

body temperature was reduced by up 

to 1 °C. In a study by the University of 

Munster, it was discovered that people 

104 


Good Practice 


playing sports in 30 °C weather improved 

their performance up to 10 percent using 

cooling vests. This means cooling apparel 

is highly effective and represents a big 

breakthrough in fighting heat. 

The marginal volume of tap water that is 

needed to activate the product means it 

is highly ecological. With climate-neutral 

production, pervormance international 

GmbH, a participant in the UN Global 

Compact, is closing the circle when it 

comes to sustainability and climate protection. 

E.COOLINE is now operating a climateneutral 

production and business. This 

means E.COOLINE is taking on a pioneering 

role, not only in the marketing 

Lactate values 

mmol / l 

3.5 

3 

2.5 

2 

1.5 

2.1 

1.93 

1.82 

1.78 

0 1 2 3 4 5 

Points in time 

3.25 

3.2 2.82 

2.63 

2.38 

2.15 

1.87 

1.75 

3.13 

2.83 

2.46 

2.3 

of cooling apparel but also in the textile 

industry. In collaboration with the 

consultancy ClimatePartner, the carbon 

emissions have been calculated for all 

work, sports, and medicine apparel and 

compensated through a certified carbonoffset 

project. Based on this information, 

detailed carbon footprints of products 

were computed for all E.COOLINE models, 

including cooling vests, T-shirts, and 

cooling headgear. 

The calculations include all carbon emissions 

produced throughout the products’ 

supply chain as well as the car park, the 

building, and everything from sourcing 

raw materials to processing, production, 

and transportation, including marketing 

and sales. pervormance international 

2.78 

2.31 

2.03 

1.82 

A B C D 

A Control conditions: 

no cooling 

B Pre-cooling: 20 min. cooling 

only before first stress test 

C Inter-cooling: 20 min. 

cooling only during break 

D Pre- & intercooling: 20 min. 

before and 20 min. between 

stress tests 

Source: Survey by the Institute of Sports Science 

university Münster 

GmbH is using this to identify the largest 

emission-drivers and implement reduction 

measures in the interest of optimizing 

processes even further. To attain a 

climate-neutral business, E.COOLINE fully 

compensates for the emissions released 

using a carbon-offset project for reforestation 

conservation in Mozambique. 

In addition to promoting reforestation, 

this also improves local social conditions 

and protects existing forest areas. 

Furthermore, the COOLINE® SX3-Technology 

is “Made in Germany.” There are no 

production facilities in countries where 

human rights are violated. The brand 

E.COOLINE from pervormance international 

GmbH respects the principle of 

women’s empowerment and more than 

50 percent of its employees are women. 

Improving the lives of workers in hot conditions 

further supports these principles. 

pervormance international GmbH, with 

its E.COOLINE product range, shows that 

it is possible to improve quality of life 

and work for people; reduce greenhouse 

gases; realize the vision to be an architect 

of a better world with innovative ideas; 

and to have innovative technological 

and sustainable values. 

www.e-cooline.com 


POStnL 

mOBILItY POStnL HeLPS 

7,650 emPLOYeeS tOWarD 

a neW Future 

By Ingrid Stuurman, PostNL 

PostNL is the national postal company in the Netherlands and currently employs more than 

59,000 people. Since 2009, the postal market in the Netherlands has been entirely free. In 

2013, PostNL’s share in this market was 79 percent and its revenue was € 4.3 billion. In the 

period between 2006 and 2013, the letter volume handled by PostNL decreased by 40 percent. 

One of the measures PostNL is being required to take to adjust its operations to this volume 

decline is changing from being a delivery company with full-time postmen and postwomen 

to a company with part-time deliverers. 

PostNL is the market leader in the Benelux 

in parcel distribution to consumers. 

The number of parcels delivered in 

the Netherlands is growing fast due to 

increased online shopping. Outside the 

Netherlands, PostNL is concentrating 

its international activities in European 

countries with growth opportunities 

for new players. These countries are the 

United Kingdom, Germany, and Italy. 

Mobility PostNL: Successful 

redeployment for mailmen and 

executive employees 

As a result of the rapidly developing 

digitization of communication and the 

decline of mail volume, PostNL has developed 

multiple master plans to reduce 

costs through various restructuring 

measures. One measure is a step-by-step 

replacement of the current full-time 

staff with newly appointed part-time 

employees in mail delivery. This aims 

at considerably reducing personnel costs 

and enabling the company to adjust its 

106 


Good Practice 


Branches where mobility replaced mailmen and mailwomen 

Administration 3.7 % 

Security 5.0 % 

Retail 4.5 % 

Education 4.1 % 

Remaining 28.1 % 

Passenger transport 6.6 % 

Production and Engineering 6.6 % 

Recreation and Tourism 3.7 % 

Transport and Logistic 10.3 % 

Business services 7.4 % 

Self-employment 5.0 % 

Care and welfare 12.8 % 

Government 2.1 % 

operations to the declining mail volume. 

In addition, PostNL has plans to reduce 

staff jobs by almost half. 

PostNL agreed to a socially responsible 

workforce reduction in 2007. The applicable 

collective labor agreement provides for 

early retirement schemes for employees. 

For other employees, PostNL installed its 

own redeployment unit, PostNL Mobility, 

which aims at supporting employees moving 

from their existing jobs to new jobs 

on a voluntary basis. 

Mobility program 

With this mobility program, the company 

aims at preparing employees for other 

job opportunities and supporting them 

in employment outside the company via 

consultations, workshops, coaching, and 

achieving qualifications. Besides individual 

coaching, the program includes 

“Job-seeks-Worker” projects, in which 

project managers can build a network of 

interesting and reputable employers with 

multiple vacancies. Also, presentations 

and guided tours at potential employers 

are part of the program. Typical branches 

that PostNL looks at are transport and logistics, 

public transport, security (private 

and public), and technique / production. 

The program for professional staff 

that was developed in 2012 to support 

them in finding new jobs was further 

expanded in 2013. This program, called 

“Mobility| PRO,” plays a prominent role 

in counseling highly educated people 

in their search for a new job. For the 

Mobility|PRO population, specific events 

are held with topics such as “Your own 

startup company.” But people can also 

choose to participate in various workshops 

with topics such as “Moving on in 

a professional way,” social media, and 

future perspectives. In addition, there are 

opportunities for assessments, vocational 

testing, interview training, and receiving 

financial advice. 

Results and impact 

Between 2006 and 2013, more than 7,500 

employees left PostNL with the help of 

its mobility program. Compared to previous 

years, the number of employees that 

are leaving the company is decreasing. 

This is due to the fact that the pool of 

full-time employees in production has 

become smaller. 

In 2013 more than 950 of our highly 

educated professional staff have used 

one of the services of Mobility|PRO. 

Hans Smit, security officer at amsterdam 

airport Schiphol, with help from mobility: 

“I had enjoyed working at PostnL for 22 years 

but when I realized that thousands of people 

would have to leave the company, I decided 

to look for new work. mobility funded my 

training and now I have a wonderful job here 

at Schiphol.” 


We 

BetterCOaL: taCKLInG 

SuStaInaBILItY ISSueS 

In COaL PurCHaSInG 

By Marga Edens, RWE 

the energy transition has many facets. not only is the structure of electricity generation shifting, 

but the procurement of fossil fuels is changing as well. In ever more places in the world, 

natural gas and coal are now being traded on commodity markets, somehow comparable to 

petroleum. It has not always been this way, especially with coal, which was previously obtained 

mainly from domestic mines. But this is changing now. In Germany for example, 2018 will mark 

the end of domestic extraction. Germany is already supplying a huge amount of its demand for 

coal from other continents. this leads to new challenges with regard to sustainability issues. 

The markets have become a great deal 

more liquid. Most of the coal on offer 

comes from mines in South Africa, 

Colombia, and Russia; their geological 

features allow coal to be extracted at 

significantly lower costs than in Western-European 

countries like Germany. 

However, there is a lack of knowledge 

concerning the conditions under which 

such mining takes place and allegations 

have been made that the mining in these 

countries has an negative impact on 

workers, the local people and the environment. 

Many of these countries do 

not have the detailed environmental 

impact assessments, socially acceptable 

resettlements, and rules for workers’ 

representation in decision-making that 

we take for granted in OECD-countries. 

Often the statements issued by mining 

companies contradict reports from environmental 

associations, human rights 

organizations, and trade unions. 

So energy suppliers face a quandary: 

How can they maintain supply from commodity 

markets and ensure sustainable 

mining conditions at the same time? The 

“Bettercoal” industry initiative is one approach 

to cope with this challenge. The 

aim of Bettercoal is to use independent 

auditing to generate more knowledge 

about the environmental and labor standards 

in coal mining. Such auditing should 

also provide more information about 

the involvement of local populations 

and the rights of employees; these will 

be audited at selected mining locations. 

Energy suppliers can use this information 

to understand how coal is extracted in 

these countries. Analyzing conditions at 

these mines should not only provide more 

information, but also have an indirect effect 

on improving the local environmental 

and labor conditions. Participants in the 

Bettercoal initiative include RWE, Dong 

Energy, EDF, E.ON, Fortum, GDF Suez, 

Vattenfall, and Gas Natural Fenosa. The 

Port of Rotterdam, where a large amount 

of coal ends up, has also been admitted 

to the group as an associated member. 

Last summer, Bettercoal developed its 

own Code. The Bettercoal Code demonstrates 

the ethical, social and environmental 

principles that organization 

members expect from their business 

partners throughout the coal supply 

chain. One example from the Code is 

that employees must be granted freedom 

of association and the right to 

organize. The Code follows international 

standards and principles such 

as the guidelines of the International 

Labour Organization, the Performance 

Standards of the International Finance 

Corporation and those of the Initiative 

for Responsible Mining Assurance. Local 

considerations are included in addition 

to international norms. Detailed consultations 

about such considerations 

took place in the mining countries of 

Colombia, Russia, South Africa and 

Indonesia before the Code was adopted, 

with local trade unions, human rights 

groups and environmental supporters 

contributing feedback during the 

process as well. 

108 


Good Practice 


The first audits based on the Code 

have started in 2014. The results of 

these audits will be made available to 

Bettercoal members to allow companies 

to decide for themselves whether, and 

under what conditions, they will engage 

in future business with the operators 

of the audited mines. 

This will also lead corporations to revise 

their own thinking: Rather than limiting 

their risk assessments to considerations 

such as credit ratings and legal integrity, 

companies can adopt additional criteria. 

This new challenge will chiefly affect the 

trading desks at energy suppliers. With 

the results of the trial assessment audits, 

Bettercoal has already explored ways to 

trigger new learning processes inside 

companies and among stakeholders. 

For example, the consultation process 

has laid bare the specific challenges that 

the implementation of such a standard 

entails; these vary according to the region 

of the actors and the respective 

steps in the value chain. 

Membership in the Bettercoal initiative 

is open to coal users from anywhere in 

the world, which means that companies 

such as cement and steel manufacturers 

are welcome to join along with 

energy suppliers. The initiative will first 

concentrate on mining operations that 

supply the international markets, but 

the Code, its standards, and its experiences 

will be made available globally 

to all interested and affected parties. 

The prognosis from the International 

Energy Agency shows that these questions 

will be no less important in the future: 

Despite the development of renewable 

energies, the agency predicts that demand 

for coal will rise by more than 50 percent 

in the next 25 years. This growth will 

mainly take place in countries that do not 

belong to the Organisation for Economic 

Co-operation and Development (OECD). 

Ensuring sustainable mining conditions 

is an important task – one that also helps 

to safeguard the acceptance of coal in Europe 

and to tie a secure coal supply to the 

principles of sustainable development. 


GOOD PraCtICe 

envIrOnment 

Principle 7: Businesses should support a precautionary 

approach to environmental challenges; 

Principle 9: encourage the development and diffusion of 

environmentally friendly technologies. 

Principle 8: undertake initiatives to promote greater 

environmental responsibility; and 

110 


envIrOnment 

112 

114 

116 

118 

120 

122 

124 

126 

130 

132 

134 

136 

138 

air France - KLm 

arab african International Bank 


Coop 

eDF Group 

Fjällräven 

GDF SueZ 

man 

metso 

novo nordisk 

Sakhalin energy 

thales 

Weidmüller 

antI-COrruPtIOn 

140 

142 

Deutsche Bahn 

volkswagen 

antI-COrruPtIOn 

Principle 10: Businesses should work against corruption 

in all its forms, including extortion and bribery. 


111

aIr FranCe - KLm 

eXPLOrInG SuStaInaBLe 

BIOFueLS FOr avIatIOn 

By Pauline Lacroix, Air France and Jacqueline Houweling, KLM 

Air France - KLM considers the transition from fossil fuels to renewables as a priority to ensure 

the future of commercial aviation. The Group’s strategy is to explore the entire value chain, 

from research to commercialization, and to set an example for the rest of the industry. 

Partnerships are important to accelerate the development of a market for sustainable biofuels. 

As an airline group, Air France - KLM connects 

people, economies, and cultures. 

The aviation industry currently generates 

approximately 2 percent of man-made 

greenhouse gas emissions, and this figure 

is expected to rise over the coming 

decades due to the increasing number 

of people traveling by plane. 

In order to reduce its environmental 

footprint, Air France - KLM adopted its 

Climate Action Plan in 2007, which focuses 

on improving operational efficiency, 

pursuing fleet modernization, 

offsetting emissions, and creating sustainable 

alternative fuels. In six years, 

the Group has reduced fuel consumption 

by nearly 7 percent per passenger 

(3.5 liters / passenger / 100 km). 

Corporate BioFuel Program 

Launched in June 2012, KLM’s Corporate 

BioFuel Program is one of the innovations 

that has been brought forth by 

the partnership with WWF-Netherlands. 

Together with WWF-NL, KLM is working 

on making the airline industry more 

sustainable, with a focus on biofuels. 

Sustainable biofuel is a so-called second 

generation biofuel, such as used cooking 

oil, which has no impact on food 

production and the environment. 

Participants pay a premium – the price 

difference between biofuel and traditional 

kerosene. This allows staff of the contracted 

companies to fly specific routes 

for company travel on sustainable biofuel. 

The surcharge is used to purchase 

biofuel, which is added to the fuel system 

at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. As is 


Good Practice 

environment 

the case with green energy, the biofuel 

is distributed across the entire network, 

which means other airlines also get a 

mixture. Therefore, the efforts of KLM 

and its partners not only help to reduce 

their ecological footprint but also benefit 

the industry as a whole. The program 

aims to stimulate the development and 

production of biofuels, thereby reducing 

the aviation industry’s carbon footprint. 

In one year, the number of program 

partners has more than doubled to 14. 

Biofuel Initiative France 

At the Paris Air Show in June 2013, Airbus, 

Air France, Safran, French civil aviation 

authorities (DGAC), and Total organized 

the “Joining Our Energies – Biofuel 

Initiative France” flight to illustrate the 

French industry’s technical capacity to 

integrate aviation biofuels and to underscore 

the need to improve research on 

the development of sustainable biofuels 

with a view to creating a French biofuel 

industry. Because the aviation industry 

has no alternative to liquid fuels of fossil 

origin, the use of biofuels is essential 

for drastically reducing CO 2 

emissions. 

An Airbus A321 equipped with Sharklets 

and powered by CFM56s made this demonstration 

flight between Toulouse and Le 

Bourget using a Bio-jet A-1 Total / Amyris, 

which is a biofuel produced through an 

innovative sugar-transformation technology. 

For several years, Total, Safran, Airbus, 

and Air France have been researching, innovating, 

and reflecting on future aviation 

fuels at the national and international 

levels. This is an innovative industrial 

approach to guarantee that the aeronautical 

industry has a sustainable future. 

JFK Biofuel flight series 

After several demonstration and commercial 

flights, including the first transatlantic 

“Bio2Rio” flight on sustainable 

biofuel, KLM – in partnership with the 

Schiphol Group, Delta Air Lines, and the 

Port Authority of New York and New 

Jersey – initiated a joint project that 

resulted in a series of weekly biofuelpowered 

flights between New York and 

Amsterdam for a period of six months, 

starting March 8, 2013. The sustainable 

jet fuel used during these flights 

was 100 percent US-produced fuel made 

from used cooking oil and camelina oil, 

sourced and supplied by SkyNRG. 

This flight series also marked the beginning 

of the Optimal Flight Program. In 

this pilot, KLM – together with Boeing, 

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, Air Traffic 

Control in the Netherlands, as well 

as research partners (TU Delft, NLR) – 

combined the use of biofuel with other 

efficiency measures to reduce fuel consumption 

and CO 2 

emissions. Some of 

the methods demonstrated for reducing 

fuel consumption and CO 2 

emissions 

were: shorter taxiing routes; gradual 

climbs; optimized routes; speed and 

altitude adjustments; weight reductions 

on board; and electrical power supplied 

from the airport instead of aircraft. The 

ultimate goal is to implement process 

changes that are operationally feasible. 

This integrated approach resulted in a 

fuel savings of almost 5 percent compared 

to regular flight schemes. 

Monitoring the atmosphere 

Air France volunteered to participate in 

the IAGOS (In-Service Aircraft for a Global 

Observing System) program, which monitors 

climate and atmospheric pollution 

around the world. Since mid-June 2013, 

the airline has been fitted with atmospheric 

measuring equipment to record 

the concentrations of greenhouse gases, 

cloud particles, and so on. 

Unlike traditional means of observation 

(probe balloons, satellites, etc.), commercial 

aircraft fly at cruising altitude 

for many hours, making frequent and 

diverse data collection possible. These 

measurements are then automatically 

transferred to the National Center for 

Scientific Research via a cell phone built 

into the system before this data is made 

available to international weather centers 

and scientists around the world. The 

Air France A340s equipped with these 

instruments will carry the slogan “Monitoring 

for Climate Research” and will 

serve the Caribbean and West Africa, 

among other destinations – areas of the 

world that are not widely covered by the 

other airlines supporting this project. 

By volunteering to participate in this 

program, Air France demonstrates its 

commitment to increase knowledge 

about the environmental effects of air 

transport. 


113

araB aFrICan InternatIOnaL BanK 

aaIB: tHe FIrSt BanK In 

eGYPt tO meaSure ItS 

CarBOn FOOtPrInt 

By Maha Hasebou and Perihan Abdel Ghaly, Arab African International Bank 

Despite the fact that Egypt is not among the top carbon dioxide emitters in the world, the 

notion of “the earlier … the better” has always been a key driving force for Arab African 

International Bank (AAIB), which is creating awareness in the banking industry about tackling 

climate change by measuring its carbon footprint and publishing its first Carbon Footprint 

Report. From Kyoto to the Rio+20 Summit the interest in global warming and climate change 

has grown exponentially over the past 10 years. The Kyoto Protocol was introduced in 1997 

in Japan and entered into force in 2005. The Protocol’s main goal was to reduce the carbon 

footprint of some countries compared to the level of emissions they had in 1990. 

During the 18th and 19th centuries, the 

focus of the industrial revolution was 

on production, technological advancement, 

chemical manufacturing, and the 

use of coal for energy. Consequently, in 

the 20th century there were alarming 

levels of environmental degradation, 

such as scarcity of resources, water and 

air pollution, climate change, and rising 

sea levels. 

The negative impacts of human practices, 

leaving what is known as a “carbon footprint,” 

has had several consequences on 

the earth since the industrial revolution. 

Large amounts of carbon dioxide and other 

greenhouse gases have been released into 

the atmosphere, causing small changes in 

the average temperature, which can translate 

into large and potentially dangerous 

shifts in climate and weather. 

The links between climate change and 

sustainable development are strong. Climate 

change knows no boundaries. Poor 

and developing countries, particularly 

the low-income developing countries, 

will be among those most adversely affected 

and least able to cope with the 

anticipated shocks to their social, economic, 

and natural systems. 

AAIB’S Carbon Footprint 

AAIB Emission in t CO 2 

e 

3500 

3000 

2500 

2000 

1500 

1000 

500 

0 

3,014.13 

In 2013, AAIB conducted its first measurement 

and assessment of its environmental 

performance and published its 

first Carbon Footprint Report within the 

Egyptian banking sector. 

178.25 

Petrol 

(Company cars) 

Electricity 

Business Travel 

1,535.25 

161.67 188.25 

Commuting 

Paper 

Consumption 

9.55 

Waste 

The report covered the duration from 

2012 to 2013. A carbon footprint serves 

to identify the environmental performance 

of a specific corporation’s greenhouse 

gases emissions. Thus, the report 

assesses the corporation’s performance 

impact on climate change. 


Good Practice 

environment 

The report summarized the following: 

• AAIB’s current Energy Consumption; 

• methods for AAIB to save its operational 

costs; 

• techniques that AAIB needs in order to 

reduce GHG emissions and indirectly; 

• how to respond to changing consumer 

expectations. 

The report paved the way for AAIB to 

brainstorm initiatives for reducing energy 

consumption and create awareness 

among employees about engagement and 

making contributions toward reducing 

energy consumption. 

The report is a tool to show employees 

what a difference they can make in the 

organization’s emissions and the progress 

they are making toward sustaining the 

environment. Moreover, saving energy 

is another way to reduce costs. 

AAIB: An Environmentally Aware 

Workforce 

Reporting is a key step toward benchmarking 

and measuring the progress in 

reducing AAIB’s carbon footprint. Communicating 

the report results internally to 

the employees is another way to ask them 

to adopt new behaviors and take steps to 

save energy and to carpool and commute 

more often. Aligning the workforce with 

the initiatives for reducing the bank’s 

carbon footprint is a central challenge, 

since the actions taken should be fun and 

sustained over time, as well as tangible. 

Creativity is a key in getting everyone’s 

attention, and believing in the measures 

makes a big difference. The campaign 

was designed by the Sustainability Unit 

as an integrated approach to bring about 

cultural change through awareness while 

adopting practices for energy management 

within the organization. 

The campaign aims at the following: 

• raising awareness about CO 2 

emissions 

and causes; 

• educating the employees about methods 

for reducing the carbon footprint; 

• engaging employees as the main stakeholders 

to “walk the talk.” 

Realizing that the concept is new and 

could be difficult to comprehend, a 

comic strip was established to create 

awareness among the employees in a 

fun yet informative way. The message 

is “Reduce your carbon footprint” (in 

Arabic كتمصب للق ‏.(ةينوبركلا This is in 

addition to other educational videos and 

links to articles about sharing common 

individual carbon practices to reduce 

energy waste and save natural resources. 

These efforts were created to develop an 

understanding about environmental 

sustainability and encourage employees 

to play a role in reducing the bank’s 

carbon footprint. 

This communication campaign runs 

parallel with the annual Earth Day. The 

Sustainability Unit introduced the campaign 

Earth Day last year in celebration 

with all of the bank's workforce to raise 

awareness about the planet and remind 

everyone of its significance to humans. 

"Despite the fact that egypt’s contributions 

to global greenhouse gas 

emissions is comparatively small, 

the impact of climate change on 

egypt is very strong. this is due to 

its nile and Delta rivers. egypt will 

suffer the most (after Bangladesh) 

from the rising sea levels as a 

results of climate change." 

Rio+20 Summit 


115

COnSOLIDateD COntraCtOrS COmPanY 

CCC’S SOLar POWer 

aDventureS 

By Tony Awad, Consolidated Contractors Company 

As a pioneer in the construction industry, and with a vision to lead in promoting green awareness, 

CCC believes in providing future generations with a healthy and safe environment as 

well as social and economic prosperity. As a result, CCC started examining the implementation 

of solar energy applications on construction camps in the Middle East early on. 

At the moment, solar technology is put to successful use in various CCC units and projects. 

The rationale behind these schemes is to reduce the electrical energy consumed by camps 

by utilizing environmentally-friendly technologies. 

Simaisma Camp – Qatar 

It started with a pilot project at the 

Simaisma Camp in Qatar. Upon completion, 

it provided solar-heated water to various 

units on site – including the laundry 

and kitchen – as well as photovoltaic 

lighting. Following this pilot project at 

Simaisma Camp, CCC has successfully 

been utilizing solar technology at various 

CCC locations for different projects 

(Greece, UAE), with the most important 

being at the Qusahwira Camp (UAE). 

Qusahwira Camp – UAE 

This was the first off-grid solar installation 

in the United Arab Emirates. The 

rooftop photovoltaic system with an 

output of 368 kilowatt-peak was one 

of the largest solar installations in the 

country. It powered a camp with more 

than 5,000 people working for an oil 

field development project in the desert. 

This solar installation generated approximately 

610 MWh per year, which was 

Left to right: Simaisma Camp, Qatar; 

Qusahwira Camp, uae; PnBar, Saudi 

arabia; 13 mW Pv Solar Power Plant, 

Dubai - uae 

used for air conditioning, kitchen installations, 

and other daytime power activities. 

Most importantly, it contributed to reducing 

CCC’s carbon footprint by offsetting 

420 tons of CO 2 

emissions annually. 


Good Practice 

environment 

Princess Noura bint AbdulRahman 

University for Women – 

Riyadh - Saudi Arabia 

Recognized as one of the world’s mega 

projects, the green building campus at 

Princess Noura bint AbdulRahman University 

(PNBAR) is the first of its kind in 

Saudi Arabia and uses the world’s largest 

district solar water heater. 

With an installed capacity of 17 MW, it 

provides hot water for all 40,000 students 

in the 8 sq km campus through its 36,000 

sq meter solar collector area. CCC was 

responsible for the construction and 

acted as a procurement partner. 

13 MW PV Solar Power Plant – 

Dubai - UAE 

Dubai’s first move toward using renewable 

energy was the inauguration of the 

largest operating Solar Photovoltaic (PV) 

Plant in the Middle East and North Africa 

in October 2013. 

The Solar Plant is Dubai’s largest, capable 

of displacing 15,000 tons of CO 2 

a 

year – the equivalent of removing 2,000 

cars from the road. It is also the largest 

Photovoltaic Plant in the region. It is the 

first stage of the planned Mohammed bin 

Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park – a vast 

complex with a planned output capacity 

of 1,000 MW by 2030. 

The new Photovoltaic Plant in Dubai was 

built by the American solar panel manufacturer 

First Solar, which will operate it on 

behalf of Dewa (Dubai Electricity & Water 

Authority). First Solar won this engineering, 

procurement, and construction (EPC) 

project amidst fierce competition, including 

from aggressive Chinese companies. 

First Solar won it based on an advanced 

technology called “thin-film PV.” The company’s 

thin-film modules have lower levels 

of power loss than any other photovoltaic 

technology. In general, all renewable 

energy technologies (solar, wind, wasteto-energy, 

etc.) are in the development 

stage. What is critical is the yield, the 

performance, and the durability after 

years of operation, but this is difficult to 

determine. The company also developed 

a water-less method to clean the panels 

to counteract the high amounts of dust. 

CCC successfully approached First Solar 

from among many local companies, demonstrating 

our strengths in logistics for 

remote areas, backup, local knowledge, 

and construction capabilities with our 

commitment to Safety and Quality. Although 

our price was not the lowest, First 

Solar made the right choice and did not 

“risk a delay.” The project was labeled a 

high-profile project by the UAE with an 

eye toward boosting Dubai as a destination 

to promote green energy and to reduce its 

carbon footprint, which will help Dubai 

for the upcoming Expo 2020. 

Although the construction value of the 

project is small (only US $13 million), the 

difficult part was coordinating the mobilization 

and construction in a very short 

period. Total duration was six months 

(May to September 2013), but this short 

period included rock finding, summer 

heat, sand storms, Ramadan leave, holidays, 

and Eid. 

The project ushers in the beginning of 

CCC’s pursuit to start the “Construction 

of Renewable Energy Projects.” 

Facts and figures: 

• The generating capacity is 13 MW of 

clean energy. 

• The project will generate 24 million 

kWh of electricity per year. 

• The project required more than 800 

man-days and 1.4 million man-hours 

to complete, all of which were accidentfree. 

• The project will eliminate 15,000 metric 

tons of CO 2 

per year. 

• Performance ratio is more than 83 

percent. 

• The project is powered by 152,880 PV 

modules, 32,000 rails, 18,000 beams, 

8,700 posts, 3,000 meters of fencing, 

13 inverter buildings, and 1 control 

33 kV substation. 

• The project covers an area of 280,000 

sq meters. 

• Operating date: 4th Quarter of 2013. 


117

COOP 

COOP naturaPLan – 

20 YearS OF COmmItment 

tO OrGanIC aGrICuLture 

By Conradin Bolliger, Alexandra Sauer, Michael Scheidegger, and Christian Waffenschmidt, Coop 

The cultivation of agricultural crops and the production of food are resource-intensive 

activities that negatively impact the environment and society. About one-third of the Swiss 

population’s ecological footprint is due to food consumption. Coop is the second-largest 

retailer in Switzerland. The cooperative has lived up to its responsibility by promoting 

organic and fair agriculture for more than 20 years. 

Coop Naturaplan – Success story of 

an organic brand 

In the beginning, a couple of people at 

Coop had a vision of providing affordable 

organic products for “everyone.” 

What started with fresh products such as 

yoghurt, bread, meat, and eggs 20 years 

ago has now grown into a range of more 

than 1,700 products, including innovative 

organic convenience products such 

as pizza and sushi. In Switzerland today, 

every second organic product is sold at 

a Coop point of sale. Coop’s turnover 

with organic food amounts to CHF 1,001 

million ($ 1.11 billion) and accounts for 

10 percent of Coop’s total food offering. 

This success story started in 1993 with 

the launch of Coop’s own organic brand, 

“Coop Naturaplan” – it was the first 

time a retailer in Switzerland had done 

so. At the outset, Coop established, and 

has maintained, a strong partnership 

with Bio Suisse in order to promote a 

breakthrough in high-standard organic 

farming in Switzerland (see box), and 

hence to change industrial agricultural 

practices. In doing so, Coop has played 

a pioneering role in fostering organic 

farming in Switzerland and abroad. 

However, Coop also faced major challenges 

along the way: 

• In the beginning, organic products had a 

“tree hugger” image, which required both 

communication efforts and considerable 

management commitment to emerge 

from this niche. Nowadays, Coop Naturaplan 

has a recognition rate of more 


Good Practice 

environment 

than 90 percent and is the best-known 

household organic brand in Switzerland. 

The song composed for its 20 th anniversary 

campaign even made it to number 

one on the Swiss single charts. 

• The quality and availability of organic 

products have often been unsatisfactory, 

and Coop had to develop its own 

production and sourcing projects. 

Organic research and innovation 

Given the scarcity of organic products 

in the 1990s, Coop decided to promote 

research in organic agriculture together 

with another well-established partner. 

For the past 17 years, Coop has engaged 

in an intensive cooperation with Switzerland's 

Research Institute of Organic Agriculture 

(FiBL) in order to support basic 

research in organic farming practices (e.g., 

reduction of concentrated feed in milk 

production and the potential of organic 

farming in the tropics) and to implement 

concrete sourcing projects. The results 

of the basic research are available to the 

public and designed to promote organic 

farming worldwide. Since 2003, the Coop 

Sustainability Fund has financed the research 

and development of sustainability 

projects with a current annual budget of 

CHF 15 million ($ 16.8 million). It supports 

innovative ecological solutions and 

pioneering practices to make organic 

farming more sustainable, enables the 

formation of ecological and fair supply 

chains, and sensitizes the population to 

sustainable consumption. Whereas the 

focus was initially placed on basic challenges 

such as the cultivation of organic 

apples that are of satisfactory quality, the 

projects today are often more complex. 

Example 1: In a procurement project for 

sustainable cocoa from Honduras, Coop, 

its production site Chocolats Halba, and 

partner NGO Helvetas helped restore cocoa 

plantations that were hit by a typhoon. 

This organic agroforestry project is aimed 

at protecting the rainforest and improving 

the living conditions of the local cocoa 

farmers. It includes training, the development 

of infrastructure, the diversification 

of crops (cocoa and wood), water management, 

as well as building up long-term and 

fair partnerships. With this engagement, 

Coop was able to introduce a high-quality 

Honduras Chocolate certified by Bio Suisse 

and Fairtrade Max Havelaar (FLO) into the 

Naturaplan range. Furthermore, thanks 

to the agroforestry approach, the entire 

production process is carbon neutral. 

Example 2: With its “Fair & Good Project,” 

the Coop rice mill Reismühle Brunnen, 

together with several partners, promotes 

organic fair-trade rice cultivation in India 

and Thailand. The project builds on cooperative 

research and development, together 

with local farmers and universities, to 

develop adapted cultivation methods that 

go beyond organic standards in terms 

of water management and greenhouse 

gas emissions. In addition, it focuses on 

raising the living standards of small-scale 

farmers, increasing their independence 

from creditors and seed producers, and 

promoting self-determination. As of the 

end of 2013, there were 1,500 farmers 

who already belonged to the producer 

cooperatives involved, which deliver 

850 metric tons of rice, certified to the 

Bio Suisse and Fairtrade Max Havelaar 

(FLO) level of standard. 

Outlook 

PartnerSHIP WItH BIO SuISSe 

By the 20th anniversary campaign of 

“Naturaplan,” Coop had reaffirmed its 

commitment to promoting organic farming. 

As the first retailer worldwide, it 

managed to launch dual-branded products, 

together with renowned brand manufacturers 

such as Nestlé and Unilever, 

and hence prompted them to develop 

their first organic products according to 

the Bio Suisse standard. The worldwide 

promotion of organic farming by Coop 

has had positive effects on producers, 

consumers, the environment, and thus 

on society in general. Many agricultural 

and manufacturing companies in Switzerland 

and abroad have been able to 

build an economically viable – and 

environmentally and socially sustainable 

– business model. This commitment 

is now firmly anchored in Coop’s core 

business, is financially successful, and 

will be continued in the next 20 years. 

Bio Suisse is the organization of Swiss organic farmers, and the cachet of its 

products is the bud logo. already in 1993 Coop undertook to sell only products 

with the bud logo under its own brand, Coop naturaplan. these products 

have to comply with the strict standards of Bio Suisse, which are much more 

stringent than those contained in Swiss and eu organic legislation. this entails 

agricultural production as well as food processing and transport. the most 

important requirements of the Bio Suisse guidelines are: 

• closed natural cycle – the entire farm is run organically 

• prohibition of heated greenhouses 

• prohibition of air transport; preference for close provenances 

• special measures for the promotion of biodiversity 

• careful processing, for example no added colors or artificial flavorings 

In addition to the Bio Suisse guidelines, Coop combines organic 

farming with the Fairtrade (FLO) standard wherever possible. 


119

eDF GrOuP 

an InDuStrIaL FIrm tHat 

COnCernS ItSeLF WItH 

nature anD BIODIverSItY 

The EDF Group’s industrial activities sometimes take place in remarkable natural settings. 

The activities interact with an area’s biodiversity and benefit from the ecosystem services 

it provides. Biodiversity is an important economic consideration for the Group – failure to 

respect regulations may lead to sites or plants being brought to a halt. A lack of in-depth 

dialogue with environmental NGOs or other stakeholders using local resources can result 

in a ban on new industrial programs. 

By EDF Group Sustainable Development Division 

The Group’s commitment is structured by 

its biodiversity policy. Introduced in 2009, 

the policy is built on three objectives, in 

line with the Global Reporting Initiative’s 

G4 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines: 

• develop knowledge of natural environments 

and the potential impacts 

of Group activities on ecosystems (G4 

indicators EN 11, EN 12 and EN 14); 

• conserve biodiversity by protecting or 

restoring natural spaces (G4 indicators 

EN 13, EN 15 and EU 13); 

• inform, train, and raise awareness of 

employees and local residents, and 

enter into dialogue with scientific communities 

and non-profit organizations. 

This policy is adjusted by the EDF Group’s 

companies and business lines, which 

implement strategies appropriate to their 

own activities and local regulations. It is 

included in the Group’s ISO 14001-certified 

Environmental Management System. 

In addition, the corporate Sustainable 

Development Department – in direct 

liaison with EDF’s business lines and 

the Group’s subsidiaries – pursues and 

guides a policy of biodiversity partnerships 

to encourage the exchange of technical 

knowledge, support projects led 

by non-profits, and implement concrete 

programs. Examples include work with 

the French Bird Protection League to 

put in place plans for managing natural 

spaces; and with French Nature Reserves 

(Réserves Naturelles de France) to create 

training courses in inventory methods. 

EDF is also working with the French committee 

of the International Union for 

Conservation of Nature, which is helping 

it to take its biodiversity policy further. 

Along with France’s National Natural History 

Museum, the Group’s R&D teams are 

developing ecological quality indicators. 

Recent developments 

With its work to conserve biodiversity, 

the EDF Group is becoming a manager 

of natural areas, for the most part in 

partnership with local non-profit organizations. 

This can happen either as part 

of offsetting mechanisms or as proactive 

measures taken on its own. 

Through its action, the EDF Group is 

supporting the rollout of public policies 

to promote biodiversity: 

• EDF and distributor ERDF have made 

a commitment to several National Action 

Plans for the Pyrenean desman, 


Good Practice 

environment 

the Cinereous vulture, the Bearded 

vulture, the European otter, the Zingel 

asper, and Bonelli’s eagle; 

• the contribution of certain EDF Group 

sites to the Natura 2000 conservation 

objectives; 

• the structuring of an internal program 

to integrate the recommendations concerning 

the fight against invasive exotic 

species and limit the territorial expansion 

of such species. 

Claude nahon, Senior vice President, 

Sustainable Development, eDF Group, 

says: “In the work that we’re doing 

with environmental protection networks, 

we’ve taken a decisive step 

forward by moving from sponsorship 

to partnership. We’re no longer supporting 

these networks by financial 

means in return for showing our logo, 

we’re working with them with a focus 

on several subject areas: knowledge, 

information, and awareness-raising 

on biodiversity issues. 

mOvInG FrOm 

SPOnSOrSHIP 

tO PartnerSHIP 

We’re working, for example, with the 

Bird Protection League on protecting 

the Bearded vulture in the Pyrenees. 

that’s led us to adjust the maintenance 

programs for our high-altitude hydro 

installations, so as to avoid in particular 

helicopters flying over the sites 

during nesting and incubation periods. 

at eDF, my priority is to make people 

aware of the issues involved in biodiversity 

as early as possible in the 

preparation phases of our industrial 

projects. and that includes projects 

that make use of renewables. One of 

the points I’m hammering home at the 

moment is to take into account bats 

in wind and solar projects. the earlier 

we take this into account for a project, 

the less we delay putting off action." 

WHen BIODIverSItY PrOteCtIOn meetS 

reGIOnaL eCOnOmIC DeveLOPment 

That is the thinking behind the program 

led by EDF Norte Fluminense in Brazil in 

the area around the city of Macaé, where 

it has a gas-fired electricity-generation 

plant. For several years now, this EDF 

Group subsidiary has been voluntarily 

supporting the Mico Leao Dourado 

(literally “golden lion tamarin”) association 

to study the behavior of this small 

monkey, which came close to extinction 

in the 1970s, and to create forest corridors 

that allow the animal to expand 

its living areas. An essential aspect of 

the program’s approach is that local 

communities (mostly small farmers) are 

encouraged not to destroy the primary 

Atlantic rainforest, which has lost 93 

percent of its surface area in just a few 

centuries. This is done by halting the 

use of pesticides and, better still, restoring 

new forest areas through regular 

reforestation operations. The work is 

paying off – in the REBIO Poço das Antas 

Biological Reserve alone, where EDF 

Norte Fluminense and its partner association 

have focused their efforts, there 

are today more than 1,600 tamarins. 

In these valleys, located about 50 km from the EDF Norte Fluminense plant, the 

forest is vital to the quantity and quality of the water. The company is supporting 

economic development here, which focuses on rainforest preservation and promoting 

green tourism. Small farmers are being encouraged to develop organic farming and 

tourism: produce fewer items that are of better quality and sell them for a higher 

price. It was a long process to reassure the farmers and explain the benefits of 

attracting a new kind of clientele that is more demanding: foreigners from around 

the world, but also people living in Rio de Janeiro who are increasingly interested in 

spending their weekends in the mountains, which are just three hours away. These 

tourists are willing to pay more for healthy products. Support for the programs 

from the Rio State government also extends to the development of small local 

companies, whether they are hotels (approved ones); sporting organizations such 

as for canyoning, paragliding, and cycling; or producers of natural products such 

as clothes woven from fiber reeds, environmentally-friendly soaps, or production 

of a very rare honey from the black bee, which is another endemic species and the 

only bee in the world that does not sting. It produces a liquid honey that cannot be 

stored, so it must be eaten right away. The ultimate objective of all these actions 

is to maintain a healthy ecosystem and develop an economic structure that allows 

residents and their children to stay in the valleys. 


121

FJäLLräven 

WOrKInG tOGetHer FOr 

anImaL WeLFare: 

COntrOLLInG tHe 

DOWn FLOW FrOm Farm 

tO reaDY-maDe PrODuCt 

By Kerstin Wolf and Aiko Bode, Fjällräven 

As part of the Fenix Outdoor group, Fjällräven became a 

participant to the UN Global Compact Principles in 2012. 

As an outdoor company, we strive to focus in particular on 

the environmental principles of the Global Compact and to 

address our current impacts as well as look for innovative 

solutions to certain issues. The precautionary principle is 

a guiding principle in our environmental strategy because 

our products are often made with materials derived from 

natural sources. We have been making down products for 

more than 40 years. 

An important question that arises in this endeavor is how 

to make high-quality down products with respect to animal 

welfare? We continuously ask ourselves this question in 

our business conduct and are in the process of finding 

an answer. We have managed to establish a production 

chain with consistent and strict controls and believe we 

have come close to achieving sustainability in this respect. 

Fruitful partnerships are part of our approach. We are 

convinced that a holistic approach and being a pioneer – 

leaving the beaten path – are key to coping with today’s 

challenges and finding working solutions. This is what we 

are striving for at Fjällräven. 

Down remains one of the most efficient 

insulators available for cold-weather 

outdoor garments and sleeping bags. 

According to the International Down and 

Feather Testing Laboratory (IDFL): “Down 

and feathers have the lowest carbon 

footprint of any other fill material, both 

natural and synthetic.” However, down 

can be problematic to source due to the 

fact that suppliers often buy from diverse 

– and sometimes even unknown – 

sources. Thus, the feathers and down 

may stem from live-plucked or force-fed 

animals – goose or ducks. Fjällräven has 

avoided these practices and begun to 

build a process whereby down is gathered 

from slaughtered animals as a byproduct 

of the food industry, ensuring that 

no live-plucking or force-feeding takes 

place. To ensure that the insulation used 

is environmentally sound and of the 

highest possible standard for animal 

protection, Fjällräven did not wait for 

the food or outdoor industries to change 

their practices. We did it our way, the 

Fjällräven Way. Today, we know that 

our approach was right, and we are now 

joined by numerous reputable brands 

that are striving to achieve a similar 

sourcing process. 


Good Practice 

environment 

Feedback from our stakeholders 

We remain in constant dialogue with 

our stakeholders. Fruitful and critical 

communication helps us to develop. 

Fjällräven values the feedback and suggestions 

given by some of our stakeholders 

and has responded to critical 

remarks by optimizing and controlling 

the processes regarding aspects relating 

to animal welfare. 

Our response: 

A controlled down flow 

Fjällräven only uses goose down and 

works exclusively with one down supplier, 

which, in turn, works with selected 

farms and one slaughterhouse. 

All Fjällräven goose down is purchased 

from this slaughterhouse and represents 

a byproduct of the food industry 

with no force-feeding. We purchase the 

down all year round to make sure we 

get the estimated volume and to guarantee 

that the down comes from the 

designated source. However, there are 

seasonal peaks, during which intensified 

controls take place. During the entire 

process, down for Fjällräven products 

is transported in specially marked and 

sealed bags to avoid it being mixed with 

down from other producers. 

Fjällräven’s audit team oversees the process 

by conducting both announced and 

unannounced audits regularly. We visit 

the farms, we know how the eggs are 

laid, how the fledglings hatch, how the 

goslings are raised, and we control how 

the birds are kept and what they are fed. 

The down’s quality and cleanliness is 

controlled by the IDFL. Our down flow 

is also regularly reviewed by a third 

party veterinarian from Sweden who 

has accredited the Fjällräven down flow. 

Logistics-wise, the distances between 

farm and slaughterhouse are kept to a 

minimum so that birds are never transported 

for longer than necessary. 

Every party involved has to sign and act 

in accordance with the standards set in 

the Fjällräven Code of Conduct. 

Focus areas are: 

• well-being of geese when farmed 

• no live plucking 

• no force-feeding 

• transportation 

• loading and unloading the geese 

• well-being and handling of geese on 

site before slaughtering 

• stunning 

• control of the process of finishing the 

down 

In 2010, Fjällräven received an honorable 

mention from Animal Welfare Sweden 

for its down handling practices. 

The impact: Cooperation with China 

The process, the partnership, and the approach 

chosen by Fjällräven was highly 

appreciated by Chinese provincial governments, 

and hence became part of 

local and regional animal welfare regulations. 

We strive for such partnerships 

because only by cooperating with all 

those responsible are positive outcomes 

possible. Fjällräven acts beyond its own 

down process to “leave the base camp 

better than we found it.” Making a contribution 

toward the ethical treatment 

of animals is what we want to achieve. 

We recognized that it was only possible 

through ongoing communication with 

our supplier and experts from NGOs as 

well as with the involvement of governmental 

organizations. We strive for such 

working collaborations using transparent 

and open dialogues in order to make 

further improvements. 

The future: Working together in 

partnerships 

As a participant of the UN Global Compact, 

we act in accordance with its Ten 

Principles and its values. In the future, 

we want to continue making business 

in this way. With the help of our stakeholders, 

we will engage in a continuous 

learning experience that will guide us in 

this process. We will continue to speak 

to experts and suppliers. We will listen, 

learn, and share our findings in order to 

ensure that every step in the production 

chain is of the highest possible standard 

from an animal welfare perspective. 


123

GDF SueZ 

Water anD enerGY: 

an ImPOrtant ISSue FOr 

GDF SueZ 

By GDF SuEZ Group 

By 2030, the world will face a water shortage in the amount of 40 percent of its needs. 

The energy sector, which is the second major user of water behind agriculture, will have to 

face this challenge. Hence, it is important for GDF SUEZ to be prepared for potential impacts 

on its business and identify risks and opportunities related to the problem of lack of water. 

Due to the nature of its industrial processes, 

GDF SUEZ pays particular attention to 

water management in its energy production 

and wastewater treatment processes. 

Since water is an essential resource for 

life, the availability and quality of water 

resources are two key priorities for the 

planet. GDF SUEZ works on these issues 

by implementing operational measures 

and by lending ideas to international 

discussions on this issue (CEO Water 

Mandate, OECD, and World Business 

Council for Sustainable Development). 

Over the last few years – and in parallel 

with climate change – sustainable water 

use has been receiving more attention. In 

particular, water use in energy production 

has become an important issue. Therefore, 

utility companies need to measure their 

water footprints and identify hotspots 

where water scarcity is a potential issue 

and intervention may be required (reduction 

in water consumption, improvement 

of discharges quality, etc.). 

The commitments of GDF SUEZ 

In 2013, the Group defined rules and 

commitments regarding water management. 

They are based on four axes: the 

evolution of environmental reporting; 

the analysis of the water risk; measurement 

of the water footprint; and the 

visions of key actors, whether investors 

or international initiatives. 

The Group is committed to seven actions, 

in keeping with the requirements set out 

by the CEO Water Mandate initiative (a 

UN Global Compact initiative): 

• To identify which sites are exposed to 

water risk and draw up local action 

plans for each one; 

• To draw up an action plan on water 

withdrawal and discharges for all the 

sites identified as being exposed to 

water stress; 

• To measure the water footprint of all 

activities; 

• To comply with local legislation; 

• To improve disclosure and transparency 

on the subject; 

• To help the improvement on water 

management and governance; 

• To respond to supplier-related water 

issues. 

The water footprint 

The water footprint is the starting point 

in understanding the impact of activities 

on water resources. It represents the 

quantity of water consumed by a site, its 

suppliers and infrastructure, weighted 

according to the site’s location and the 

water quality. Integrated with the lifecycle 

assessment, the results are provided in 

liter equivalents, due to the application 

on the volume of water, characteristic 

factors for water quality and localization. 

Several methods exist today, and 

GDF SUEZ seeks to find the best one 

suited for energy activities. 

In 2012 and 2013, the first step consisted 

of taking into account the water footprint 

in the lifecycle assessment of 1 kWh of 

electricity. 

The water risk 

Identification of industrial facilities 

located in water-stressed areas and determining 

the quantities of water withdrawn 

by source type are the first steps 

in defining the water risk. Once these 

two issues are identified for each site, 

it is possible to develop and implement 

adequate action plans where necessary. 

For GDF SUEZ, just over 50 sites are 

located in areas of extreme water stress. 


Good Practice 

environment 

Good practice 

The Water Resources Conservation in Brazil – 

Tractebel Energia 

Aware of the importance of water conservation 

for sustainable development, 

Tractebel Energia launched a program 

for the Conservation of Water Sources in 

July 2011. The initiative brings together 

projects that have already been developed 

by plants operated by the company, as well 

as similar actions systematized in other 

regions where Tractebel Energia operates. 

The objectives of the program are as 

follows: 

• take effective action in water resource 

conservation; 

• maintain the quality and quantity of 

water in watersheds operated by Tractebel 

Energia plants; 

• encourage conservation practices in 

areas where the company operates; 

• encourage and educate the public about 

the rational use of water; and 

• engage the community to take action 

to preserve the environment in the 

regions where plants are operated. 

To develop the project, Tractebel Energia 

signed an agreement with the public 

sector and the municipality of Chopinzinho 

in the state of Paraná in Brazil, 

located in the region of the Salto Santiago 

plant, which is rehabilitating about 300 

existing sources of water in rural lands 

where children and adolescents live. 

The initiative aims to contribute toward 

an improvement in the quality of the 

water consumed by the community and 

thereby reduce the incidences of disease 

in children and adolescents caused by 

pathogens. To ensure the protection of 

water sources used by the farms, the 

areas near sources are isolated with 

concrete for protection and to prevent 

contamination of the water. Tractebel 

Energia has also donated about 2,000 

plants species native to the project to 

help reforest the area. Families in the 

community are trained to participate 

in the rehabilitation process and the 

maintenance of resources. They also 

receive training about water quality 

and reforestation to implement these 

activities on their properties. In 2013, 

about 280 sources in the region were 

protected by the project. 

In the area where the thermoelectric complex 

Jorge Lacerda is located, Tractebel 

Energia has been developing a project 

of source protection in the area of 

Capivari de Baixo since 2009. This has 

been achieved in partnership with the 

Watershed Committee of the Tubarão 

River and the lagoon complex of Santa 

Catarina in Brazil. The aim is to preserve 

the water quality of the Tubarão River, 

which provides the water supply for a 

population of about 360,000 people and 

is being degraded by different sources 

of pollution. Since the launch of the 

project, 21 sources have been protected 

through the construction of 4,000 meters 

of fencing and by planting 7,000 forest 

trees in 21 farms. 

The Conservation of Water Sources project, 

developed by Tractebel Energia, 

won the Environmental Award from 

the Chamber of Commerce of France 

in 2013. Brazil is expanding their implementation 

to all facilities operated 

by Tractebel Energia in Brazil. A total 

of about 720 sources will be protected 

by the end of the deployment period 

in 2015. 


125

man 

man LIveS ItS COmmItment 

tO CLImate PrOteCtIOn 

By Yvonne Benkert, MAN 

As a global player in the transportation and energy sectors, MAN has a special responsibility 

to contribute to the reduction of the global carbon footprint. MAN lives up to this responsibility 

– in its Climate Strategy, it has set a clear objective: a 25 percent reduction in CO 2 

emissions 

from the company’s production sites by 2020 (baseline: 2008). The MAN Group has already 

cut CO 2 

emissions by 77,000 tons since 2008 – primarily due to the dedication and 

creativity of its employees, who initiate and carry out climate-protection projects at its sites. 


Good Practice 

environment 

MAN's Climate Strategy 

Acknowledge responsibility 

the transportation and 

energy sectors are contributing 

to climate change to an 

evergreater extent. 

Dilemma and approach 

the interaction between 

our own product development, 

our suppliers, legislation, 

and our customers and 

their customers is complex. 

man'S CLImate StrateGY 

Climate Change is among the greatest challenges to humanity. man is fully aware of and 

acknowledges its responsibility to reducing the global carbon footprint of the transportation 

and energy sector. 

man has set itself the target of reducing its own CO 2 

emissions by 25 % by 2020. (baseline: 2008) 

Commitment 

Our target: reduce our 

own CO 2 

emissions by 25 % 

by 2020 (baseline: 2008) 

Vision 

By 2020, our aim is to be 

recognized as one of the 

industry players to have 

dealt with the challenges of 

climate change the best. 

Resource scarcity, climate change, globalization, 

and urbanization are global 

challenges. MAN actively addresses these 

issues through its comprehensive corporate 

responsibility (CR) strategy. At MAN, 

CR finds concrete expression in four 

fields of action: integration, economy, 

environment, and people. Integrating 

economic, environmental, and social 

responsibility into its business practices 

is central to MAN’s success. MAN’s employees 

are essential to this process – 

they are its CR ambassadors. Only with 

their participation can MAN find fitting 

answers to the most urgent questions 

of our time. 

Left side: at the man truck & Bus plant 

in nuremberg, Germany, employees 

developed an innovative cold test that 

reduces the negative environmental 

impacts of engine testing. 

Fighting climate change 

Climate change is one of the greatest 

challenges facing humankind – and 

MAN. As one of Europe’s leading manufacturers 

of commercial vehicles and mechanical 

engineering equipment, MAN 

has a special responsibility when it comes 

to protecting the climate. According 

to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation 

and Development, the transportation 

sector is responsible for some 

15 percent of global CO 2 

emissions – a 

percentage that is rising. The energy 

sector presents a similar picture, with 

experts predicting that, by 2030, global 

demand will exceed current levels by 

more than 30 percent. MAN has a duty 

to contribute to a global reduction in 

CO 2 

emissions – and a business interest 

as well. In light of all these factors, 

at the end of 2011, the Management 

Board signed off on MAN’s Climate Strategy, 

a key component of the Company’s 

CR strategy. 

Clear objectives for 

climate protection 

MAN has more than 30 production sites 

in 14 countries. These facilities consume 

raw materials and electricity and use 

resources to generate energy, causing 

CO 2 

emissions. At the same time, MAN 

is working to continuously reduce the 

carbon footprints of its production sites. 

At the heart of MAN’s Climate Strategy 

is a commitment to cutting its CO 2 

emissions by 25 percent worldwide by 

2020 (baseline: 2008). This represents 

an annual decrease of 125,000 tons of 

carbon dioxide – equivalent to the annual 

emissions of a small German town 

with 14,000 inhabitants. 

“MAN can only meet its ambitious climate 

target with the full support of its employees,” 

underscores Jochen Schumm, Chief 

Human Resources Officer, who is responsible 

for CR at MAN. “The company has to 

empower them to take on responsibility 


127

man 

in their daily activities.” That is why MAN 

has prioritized raising awareness of the 

need for climate protection among its 

employees. MAN aims to work together 

to reduce the carbon footprint of each 

tHe man GrOuP 

the man Group, headquartered 

in munich, Germany, is one of 

europe’s top commercial vehicle, 

engine, and mechanical engineering 

companies. as a producer 

of trucks, buses, diesel engines, 

turbomachinery, and special gear 

units, man holds leading market 

positions in all its divisions. man’s 

core business activities shape pioneering 

transportation and energy 

solutions that are both ecological 

and economical and meet the 

needs of customers and society. 

the man Group employs some 

53,500 employees in more than 

150 countries and includes the 

companies man truck & Bus, 

man Latin america, man Diesel 

& turbo, and renk. In 2013 the 

Company reported revenue of approximately 

€ 15.7 billion. 

facility and find ways to use energy more 

efficiently. MAN has already launched a 

number of initiatives at its sites around 

the world to cut CO 2 

emissions and boost 

energy efficiency. The projects all have 

one thing in common: They actively 

involve MAN’s employees and thrive on 

their commitment. 

Resource efficiency in Nuremberg 

The MAN Truck & Bus plant in Nuremberg, 

Germany, must cut CO 2 

emissions 

by almost 28,000 tons in order to meet 

the Group’s climate target. Employees at 

the site are applying the full force of their 

creativity to mastering this challenge. 

For instance, they developed a method 

for cold testing engines – MAN was the 

first commercial vehicle manufacturer 

to successfully apply the method. Not 

only is cold testing quick and safe, it is 

also better for the environment than the 

hot testing method that was previously 

used – it cuts diesel consumption by 

approximately one million liters per 

year and reduces CO 2 

emissions by 3,000 

tons. In addition, modern test benches 

have allowed test runs to be shifted off 

the roads and into the workshop. All 

traffic, weather, and load conditions can 

be simulated without negative environmental 

impacts. 

Cold testing is just one of the many measures 

that are making the Nuremberg production 

site more energy efficient. The 

Walk of Energy sums up and illustrates 

the potential for production-related carbon 

savings at different stations. It shows 

employees and visitors how efficient 

compressed-air generation, machining 

centers that switch off automatically, 

and split-level ventilation can cut energy 

consumption in the production and 

assembly shops. Every station in the 

Walk of Energy has made a significant 

contribution toward cutting CO 2 

emissions, 

and the plant’s carbon footprint 

has been reduced by 10,800 tons since 

2008. This means the facility is already a 

third of the way toward reaching its goal. 

Green Office in Shanghai 

At MAN Diesel & Turbo in Shanghai, 

China, all energy-saving measures have 

been bundled in the Green Office initiative. 

Solar panels now cover large portions 

of the administration building’s 

roof, providing some of the energy used 

in the offices. In addition, all light bulbs 

have been replaced with energy-saving 

bulbs. And the employees are also making 

an important contribution: When the 

office closes for the evening, one staff 

member on each floor goes through and 

makes sure all electric equipment has 

been switched off. A different employee 

is responsible each week. Not only has 

the Green Office initiative increased 

employee awareness of the responsible 

use of resources – it has also boosted 

their team spirit. 


Good Practice 

environment 

Energy Efficiency Network 

Changzhou 

In Changzhou, China, 200 kilometers 

further west, MAN Diesel & Turbo is also 

playing its part in meeting the Groupwide 

climate goal. Not only has the site 

invested in efficient production equipment, 

but the employees also receive 

regular training in energy efficiency. An 

energy-saving-awareness bulletin board 

in the break rooms keeps employees informed 

about the plant’s current energy 

consumption. And awarding an Energy 

Efficiency Star to particularly successful 

energy savers provides additional motivation. 

MAN Diesel & Turbo is sharing 

the best practices from this site with 

others; in 2010 it joined forces with 12 

other companies in the region to form 

the Energy Efficiency Network Changzhou. 

This corporate network offers a 

unique platform for exchanging information, 

learning from one another, and 

developing efficiency-boosting ideas. The 

Energy Efficiency Network Changzhou 

has already identified a remarkable 98 

ideas for saving energy. 

Climate-friendly training center 

in Holeby 

In Denmark, MAN Diesel & Turbo’s 

PrimeServ Academy in Holeby serves 

as a shining example of climate-friendly 

facility design. In 2013 the insulation, 

heating, and lighting at the Holeby training 

center were optimized for energy 

efficiency. The goal was to minimize 

heating and electricity costs. The savings 

are not just a win for the climate, but 

for the company’s bottom line as well. 

“Manage responsibly” in Munich 

Managers are important multipliers who 

raise awareness about corporate responsibility 

and climate protection within 

the company. To this end MAN Truck & 

Bus launched its “Manage responsibly” 

program in 2012, providing managers 

with comprehensive training on climate 

and sustainability issues. This puts the 

managers in a position to understand 

all aspects of corporate responsibility, 

to set themselves goals, and to motivate 

their teams to work to improve climate 

protection. Almost 300 employees have 

already attended the training course. 

But managers are not the only key target 

group when it comes to raising CR 

awareness at MAN – young talents are 

important too. With this in mind, in 

2013 the “Manage responsibly” program 

was integrated into the MAN Truck & 

Bus trainee program as well. 

CO 2 

cut by 77,000 tons 

“The wide range of efficiency-boosting 

projects in MAN sites around the world 

makes it clear that the employees are 

committed to MAN’s Climate Strategy,” 

notes Schumm. “All the measures have 

Left side: Solar panels on the roof 

of the man Diesel & turbo site in 

Shanghai, China, generate clean 

energy. 

Mid: an energy-saving awareness 

bulletin board keeps man Diesel & 

turbo employees in Changzhou, China, 

informed about the plant’s current 

energy consumption. 

Right side: man truck & Bus trainees 

attend half-day workshops, which 

provide concrete examples of what 

corporate responsibility and climate 

protection mean for man. 

had an impact, already allowing MAN 

to cut CO 2 

emissions by 77,000 tons 

compared to the baseline year of 2008.” 

This represents a 14 percent reduction 

in MAN’s carbon footprint, meaning 

that the company is already halfway 

toward reaching its climate target. By 

2020, MAN is aiming not only to reduce 

CO 2 

emissions by 25 percent, but 

also to gain recognition as one of the 

industrial companies that is handling 

the challenges of climate change most 

effectively. And together with its employees, 

MAN is now much closer to 

achieving these goals. 


129

metSO 

FrOm WaSte tO enerGY – 

SuCCeSSFuLLY anD SaFeLY 

By Paula Niemistö 

The Riverside Resource Recovery Energy from Waste Facility, the largest such facility in the 

United Kingdom, is located on the bank of the River Thames in London. Metso’s automation 

solutions play a significant role in managing the waste-to-energy plant successfully and 

safely. The plant produces around 478,000 MWh of electricity a year, which is the equivalent 

produced by burning 191,000 tons of coal. 


Good Practice 

environment 

“metSO Dna OFFerS aDvanCeD OPtImIZatIOn, 

meCHanICaL COnDItIOn mOnItOrInG, 

anD PrOCeSS PerFOrmanCe mOnItOrInG.” 

Not only can the operators see what is 

happening as it is happening, they can 

also do something about it: A wide range 

of adjustments can be made and parameters 

monitored electronically from the 

operator’s position. Traditionally, this 

would, in many cases, have involved 

someone physically adjusting a valve or 

checking a reading. This facet of the system 

is important with a small operating 

team on shift. Online changes to equipment 

have also been carried out successfully 

and safely, minimizing disruption 

to the routine operation of the plant. 

With detailed historical information 

stored in a database, comparison and 

forecast reports can be produced quickly 

and easily. 

Municipal household waste from six 

London boroughs is taken to Riverside, 

usually by barge. The amount of the 

waste is massive, but so is the capacity 

of the plant: It is expected to manage 

an average of 585,000 tons of waste per 

year, but it has a capacity of 670,000 tons. 

Waste throughput up to 

90 tons per hour 

On arrival at the Riverside facility, the 

waste is taken to the main plant building 

and tipped into a storage bunker. 

Each of the three boilers is charged with 

waste, each with a throughput of up to 

30 tons per hour. The waste then enters 

the combustion chamber via a vertical 

feed chute. 

Steam is generated through heat-transfer 

from the combustion process into waterfilled 

boiler tubes. Superheated steam 

from the boilers is used to operate the 

72 MW turbo generating unit, which is 

connected to the national grid. 

Waste does not have a standard heating 

value like most carbon-based liquid, 

solid, or gas fuels, which means the heat 

value of the waste can vary considerably. 

Controlling the combustion process 

therefore requires many variable inputs 

to ensure a stable output as well as a 

combustion process that continuously 

operates safely and within acceptable 

environmental limits. 

Advanced optimization and 

monitoring 

The process control at the Riverside 

Energy from Waste Plant is achieved by 

using a Metso DNA automation system. 

Metso DNA is a single integrated automation 

and information platform for process 

control, high-speed machine control, 

batch control, and SIL-certified safety 

controls. It offers advanced optimization, 

mechanical condition monitoring, and 

process performance monitoring. 

At the Riverside Energy from Waste 

Plant, Metso DNA gathers information 

from a large number of sensors – everything 

from the initial waste-handling 

process to the composition of the emission 

gasses at the stack to the pressure of 

the steam at the turbine and the conditions 

in the various auxiliary systems. 

The sheer quantity of information 

available could be overwhelming, but 

Metso DNA displays it in such a way 

that only those areas requiring attention 

are highlighted while still making 

all information visible. 

Operators can easily view both live and 

previous data simultaneously, thus enabling 

them to identify trends and to take 

any necessary remedial action as soon as 

possible. Likewise, this information can 

be displayed and easily accessed in readonly 

format by managers or engineers, 

and it is used to provide user-friendly 

management and operational reports. 

Increasing opportunities for 

energy-from-waste solutions 

In a world where the amount of municipal 

waste continues to mount, Metso sees 

significant potential for growth for the 

use of recycled waste. The focus of the 

company’s research and development 

activities is on environmental technology 

solutions that represent new technologies, 

such as waste utilization. 

The way Metso sees it, a company aiming 

to solve global social and environmental 

challenges will succeed in the long term 

and will create value and well-being for 

all the company’s stakeholders as well 

as society. 

Metso believes that one of the best ways 

to promote sustainable development is to 

innovate in technologies and to change 

current ways of operating to align with 

principles of sustainability. This is how 

Metso wants to take part in creating a 

more sustainable future. 

aBOut metSO 

metso is a leading process performance 

provider, with customers 

in the mining, construction, and 

oil and gas industries. Our focus is 

on the continuous development of 

intelligent solutions that improve 

sustainability and profitability. 

metso employs around 16,000 

professionals in 50 countries. 

www.metso.com 

www.twitter.com/metsogroup 


131

nOvO nOrDISK 

GettInG tO tHe BOttOm LIne 

OF envIrOnmentaL ImPaCtS 

Companies depend on services provided by nature, such as fresh water, clean air, healthy 

biodiversity, and productive land, and their impact on the environment stretches far beyond 

what goes in and out of a production site. However, the total environmental cost of doing 

business is not fully accounted for in today’s financial disclosures. 

Novo Nordisk has looked beyond its own business operations to track 

the true cost of its environmental impacts. 

By Camilla Crone Jensen and Scott Dille, Novo Nordisk 

Novo Nordisk’s business philosophy is 

one of balancing financial, social, and 

environmental considerations – also 

known as “The Triple Bottom Line.” For 

more than two decades, Novo Nordisk 

has continued to explore new ways to 

better understand, manage, and account 

for its environmental impacts. The company 

published its first environmental 

report in 1994, and in 2014 it reached a 

new milestone when it became the first 

pharmaceutical company in the world 

to publish an environmental profit and 

loss (E P&L) account. 

Environmental “track and trace” 

An E P&L is like an environmental “track 

and trace” that places a monetary value 

on the environmental impacts of an 

organization and its supply chain. It 

puts an estimated price on a service that 

nature provides but for which a market 

price may not exist, or where the market 

price does not reflect the full cost. The 

result is an account that shows how 

profitability would be affected if the 

company had to pay for its full impacts. 

“Of course it is a difficult task to place a 

monetary value on services such as fresh 

water, clean air, biodiversity, and land. 

However, a monetary value allows for 

direct comparison between the E P&L 

account and the regular profit and loss 

account of a company,” says Anne Gadegaard, 

Programme Director, Corporate 

Sustainability at Novo Nordisk. 

In the E P&L, the “profit” refers to any 

company activity that benefits the environment, 

whereas the “loss” refers to 

activities that impact the environment 

negatively. Currently, only some of these 

costs are borne by the company, such as 

fees to local governments for water treatment. 

Companies are not held accountable 

for the remaining environmental losses, 

known as external costs or externalities. 

This could, for example, be the cost of 

replacing a scarce resource or the associated 

health costs related to air pollutants. 

Beyond your own business 

operations 

Performing an E P&L can be a daunting 

task, as it requires digging deep into 

the organization to obtain the needed 

data – but this is only a small part of 

the equation. The idea behind an E P&L 

is to also include the environmental 

costs generated by suppliers and their 

respective supply chains throughout 

the world. Where data is not available, 

environmental costs are derived from 

using life-cycle assessment modeling. 

Novo Nordisk’s E P&L has been built on 

the work of PUMA, who was the first 

global corporation to publish a pioneering 

E P&L back in 2011. The work has 

been carried out in collaboration with 

the Danish Ministry of Environment, 

NIRAS, 2.-0 LCA Consultants as well as 

Trucost, who also assisted PUMA with 

their environmental valuation. 


Good Practice 

environment 

The account is based on 2011 performance 

data and includes Novo Nordisk’s 

own operations as well as all tiers in 

the company’s supply chain, from the 

finished products and services that the 

company sources (tier 1), to processed 

raw materials (tier 2), all the way down 

to the extraction of raw materials or the 

cultivation of farm crops (tier 3). Environmental 

indicators cover greenhouse 

gas emissions, other air pollutants, and 

water consumption. 

The E P&L showed that in 2011 Novo 

Nordisk was responsible for € 29 million 

worth of services delivered by nature 

COmParInG Water FOOtPrIntS aCrOSS 

COuntrIeS 

an e P&L can be a useful tool to identify environmental hotspots in the supply 

chain and manage risks – for example, when it comes to the company’s water 

footprint. 

a key ingredient in the production of insulin – novo nordisk’s main product 

offering – is glucose, which comes from milled and processed corn. Glucose is 

purchased by novo nordisk in large quantities and relies heavily on agricultural 

land during the farming of corn, which has a significant water footprint. using 

water data that measures water footprints of crops by country, novo nordisk 

can gain a better understanding of how the sourcing location and regional 

water scarcity might influence risk in the production of glucose. 

novo nordisk sources its crop inputs primarily from europe. the chart below 

shows a comparison of water footprints (cubic meters / tonne) and water cost 

(eur / tonne) between a european reference country, the united States, and 

China (two of the world’s largest corn producers). Per tonne of product, China 

requires the most water, at 1,073 m 3 / t of crop, and the european reference 

country requires the least, at 643 m 3 / t of crop. 

However, the picture changes slightly when valuations are applied to the water 

quantities. the european country requires the least water per tonne of corn 

produced, but has the highest environmental cost, at € 29. the united States, 

on the other hand, has a much lower environmental cost of € 19. In the context 

of novo nordisk’s environmental impacts, moving production of glucose from 

europe, which has a relatively high water cost, to a country like the united 

States, which has a lower water cost, might be something to consider when 

mitigating risk for raw material inputs. 

Water Footprint (m 3 tonne of crop) 

1.200 - 

1.000 - 

800 - 

600 - 

400 - 

200 - 

– - 

- – 

A European Country USA China 

Green Water Footprint (m 3 tonne of crop) Blue Water Footprint (m 3 tonne of crop) Cost 

- 35 

- 30 

- 25 

- 20 

- 15 

- 10 

- 5 

Cost per tonne (EUR) 

for operational activities alone. Looking 

further down the supply chain, the costs 

increase substantially. Environmental 

costs across tiers 1, 2, and 3 amounted 

to € 194 million, or 87 percent of the total 

cost. Novo Nordisk’s own operations 

constitute only 13 percent of the total 

environmental impact, and the main 

environmental impacts occur in tiers 1 

and 3 of the supply chain. Greenhouse 

gas emissions contribute the most to the 

total cost (77 percent). 

The value of tracking environmental 

costs 

With the E P&L, Novo Nordisk is now one 

step closer to placing a real price on its 

environmental costs. But where does the 

value in this lie, and what will the results 

be used for? One insight from the E P&L 

is that the majority of Novo Nordisk’s 

environmental impacts lie outside the 

company’s direct control, and therefore 

can be more difficult to influence. Here, 

the opportunity to reduce impacts lies 

in direct engagement with suppliers, 

and thereby also support the existing 

supplier strategy. 

Although Novo Nordisk continuously 

works to improve the transparency of its 

environmental performance reporting, 

E P&L accounting will not become part 

of Novo Nordisk’s standard reporting in 

the near future. Instead, the key strength 

of the E P&L lies in its ability to map 

impacts and manage risks. 

“The E P&L provides knowledge that will 

enable us to focus our efforts on the 

areas of our business with the largest 

environmental impacts and where there 

is potential for reductions,” says Anne 

Gadegaard. “One step could be to develop 

an environmental balance sheet 

to ensure that long-term costs of our 

environmental impact can be included 

in investment decisions. And by taking 

a proactive approach, we will strengthen 

company resilience in the long run.” 

To read Novo Nordisk’s E P&L, go to 

www.novonordisk.com/sustainability 


133

SaKHaLIn enerGY 

SaLmOn eDuCatIOn On tHe 

FISH-SHaPeD ISLanD 

By Anna Lygina and Natalia Gonchar, Sakhalin Energy 

Sakhalin Energy Investment Company Ltd. was founded in 1994 to develop the Piltun- 

Astokhskoye and Lunskoye oil and gas fields off the shore of Sakhalin Island. The company 

was the first in Russia to start offshore hydrocarbon production from ice-resistant platforms 

and liquefied natural gas production. It can be justifiably proud of its achievements in the 

field of environmental protection and social responsibility. 

Sakhalin Energy performs its operations 

on the territory of Sakhalin Oblast, the 

only insular region in Russia. Life of 

Sakhaliners is directly or indirectly connected 

to the sea and fish, and even the 

island itself resembles a giant fish. There 

is a very special place in the islanders’ 

hearts and diet that belongs to all the different 

kinds of salmon: pink, red, cherry, 

dog, king, among others. According to 

estimates, salmon accounts for nearly 

half of the jobs of the Sakhalin rural 

population. Intensive forest operations, 

the rapid development of Sakhalin’s offshore 

development, and especially poaching 

all have an impact on environment. 

Recognizing its responsibility to the society 

and fulfilling its commitment to 

develop business in a sustainable and 

ethical manner, Sakhalin Energy has 

implements programs for environmental 

control, monitoring, and biodiversity 

conservation, which are among the best 

practices and aimed at minimizing its 

impacts on the unique ecosystems of 

Sakhalin Island. In addition, the company 

has been implementing projects 

targeted at the conservation of salmon 

species and their habitats and has given 

special attention to educational activities. 

The Sakhalin Salmon Education project 

has combined the efforts of two partner- 


Good Practice 

environment 

ships initiated by Sakhalin Energy: the 

Sakhalin Salmon Initiative and Save 

the Salmon Together, in addition to 

other environmental initiatives of the 

company concerning salmon species 

conservation. 

The main objective of the Sakhalin 

Salmon Initiative is to contribute to 

the preservation and rational use of 

wild salmon and its ecosystem by securing 

the sustainable economic and 

social development of Sakhalin. The 

project of environmental education of 

younger generations has been successfully 

implemented through the Sakhalin 

Salmon Initiative. The project is focused 

on salmon – the most unique element 

of Sakhalin nature – and demonstrates 

how it is important to save salmonspawning 

rivers. Since 2008, more than 

7,000 young people have attended summer 

ecological camps, festivals, and educational 

events related to the program. 

In 2013, field eco-workshops were introduced 

in some Sakhalin districts. The 

programs were developed by teachers 

and volunteers of the Boomerang NGO. 

A School of Volunteers for teenagers 

and young people was developed and is 

focusing on salmon species. Volunteers 

acquire knowledge on salmon biology 

and behavior, conservation approaches 

to salmon habitats, as well as field camp 

training techniques. 

One of the most popular programs of 

the project is Salmon Watch for students 

aged 12 to 17 and Kapelka (the Droplet) 

for children aged 4 to 6. The programs 

present the life of salmon to children. In 

addition, the best international practices 

and local community knowledge are 

used in the programs. 

The Salmon Watch program is an adaptation 

of a similarly-named program in 

the United States developed by Oregon 

Trout and has been customized for the 

Russian educational system. The idea of 

the program is to acquaint students with 

the cultural and economic importance 

of the fish and to develop a responsible 

attitude toward the conservation 

of salmon biodiversity. The program 

includes a theoretical course, practical 

field work, and is designed within a 

supplementary education program or 

as a special course. Some components 

can also be used in local biology and 

ecology classes. 

Within the Kapelka program, a small 

drop of water named Kapelka speaks 

about the specifics of each type of 

salmon, their appearance and biology, 

the relations between animate and inanimate 

nature, and human impact 

on the salmon population. The story is 

presented as a fairytale so as to make 

it interesting for children and easier 

to remember. The Class Guidelines for 

the teaching staff contain information 

on salmon as well as theory for a more 

detailed study of Kapelka’s story. More 

details and information on salmon can 

be obtained from the multimedia album 

Life of Salmon. 

In 2013, both programs were examined 

by the Sakhalin Institute for Education 

Development. Based on the results, the 

programs were recommended for use in 

kindergartens and schools. Educational 

programs, including guidance papers 

and visual materials, are available at: 

www.sakhsalmoninitiative.org. 

The Sakhalin Institute for Education 

Development, supported by the company, 

also conducted a workshop for 

the teaching staff of schools and supplementary 

education centers. Learning 

about aquatic ecosystems and riparian 

ecology research methods, as well as 

teaching through games, took place 

outdoors. 

How Ivan Saved the Wonder Fish by the 

Sakhalin Puppet Theatre is a new show 

aimed at raising environmental awareness. 

The fairytale about the adventures of 

Wonder Fish the Salmon and a young man 

Ivan has become a part of the theater’s 

repertoire. For those who cannot visit the 

theater, a video version of the show will be 

made and distributed among the schools. 

A new website www.salmon-friend.ru 

has been launched. It offers children 

interactive games, quizzes, and other 

materials. The site is used by teaching 

staff for salmon study classes. The 

materials can also be studied jointly by 

children and their parents. 

• Salmon Watch and the Kapelka educational 

eco-programs are implemented 

in 63 Sakhalin schools and used in 

other regions of Russia. 

• More than 90 teachers attended Salmon 

Watch and the Kapelka program workshops. 

• More than 1,500 children participated 

in three Children’s Art Contests Live, 

Salmon. 

• Nine Live, Salmon ecological and educational 

festivals were held. 

• Three-day ecological and educational 

field workshops took place in four 

Sakhalin districts. The workshops were 

attended by 211 children aged 7 to 16. 

• There were 12 showings of How Ivan 

Saved the Wonder Fish in 2013. 

• http://salmon-friend.ru website is 

launched. 

A concerned attitude about nature is a 

global challenge. However, Sakhalin Energy 

believes that a partnership approach 

and education efforts with active community 

involvemwent can make a difference. 

Save the Salmon Together! 


135

tHaLeS 

FIGHtInG CLImate CHanGe 

Thales is responding to the major issue of climate change by implementing a strategy of 

at-source reduction of CO 2 

emissions, helping to raise awareness of climate-related issues 

through a number of programs and partnerships, and promoting products and services that 

support the emission-reduction initiatives of its customers and society at large. 

By Sandrine Bouttier-Stref, Thales 

For a number of years, Thales has been 

taking steps to reduce its carbon footprint. 

Since the Group began measuring 

its emissions on the basis of the Greenhouse 

Gas Protocol and set emission-reduction 

targets, awareness of the impacts 

of its activities on climate change has 

grown and a number of new opportunities 

have been identified. 

To reduce its CO 2 

emissions, the Group 

has launched ambitious programs to 

reduce its energy consumption, particularly 

fossil fuels, renovated buildings to 

more stringent ecological standards, and 

changed consumption habits. 

Efforts have continued to encourage the 

use of the latest information technologies 

and promote transport audits and 

communication campaigns to show employees 

the benefits of using alternative 

modes of transport. 

The Group is also paying particular attention 

to its industrial processes, particularly 

those that use fluids with a high 

global-warming potential. 

Using technology to fight 

climate change 

Throughout the world, customers of 

Thales are facing a range of environmental 

challenges. As a major player on 

the security market and in air, rail, and 

road transportation, the Group is using 

its technical expertise and capacity for 

innovation to help its customers address 

these challenges. 

Transport and environmental 

challenges 

In today’s increasingly urbanized world, 

creating sustainable conditions for urban 

mobility and inter-city travel is an important 

way of reducing CO 2 

emissions. 

For more than 30 years, Thales has been 

helping city authorities and large-scale 

transport network operators to meet the 

increasing demand for more-efficient 

means to travel. The challenge is clear: 

convince commuters to switch modes of 

transport by offering them multimodal 

options that are cheaper, quicker, and 

more convenient. Thales systems help 

to make infrastructure operators more 

efficient while improving the service 

provided to customers. The fare collection 

systems deployed by Thales allow 

the CDP 

Since 2005, thales has disclosed 

full details of its climate change 

strategy on the Carbon Disclosure 

Project (CDP) website. the CDP 

aims to assist investment decisions 

taken by its members by 

informing them of the effects of 

climate change on companies. 


Good Practice 

environment 

passengers to use a single ticket to travel 

on different modes of transport in a given 

region or even across an entire country. 

Solutions provided by Thales also allow 

rail operators to cut their energy consumption 

by modifying speed profiles 

according to operational requirements or 

reducing energy-intensive stop-and-start 

cycles, for example. Thales leads the field 

in automated train control systems based 

on CBTC (Communications-Based Train 

Control) technology, which significantly 

increases the number of trains that can 

operate on a given line, and thus helps 

make urban rail systems more efficient. 

Road-charging systems for trucks, such 

as those introduced in Germany, Switzerland, 

and Austria, help regulate road 

traffic flows and provide revenues for 

vital infrastructure upgrades. Thales 

is also a recognized expert in highway 

supervision and information systems designed 

to improve the driving experience. 

With air transport volumes set to expand 

significantly in the coming years, there is 

a clear need for the air transport sector 

to reduce its environmental footprint. 

Thales is a market leader in avionics 

and air traffic management solutions 

and manages research and technical 

development projects with a view to 

enhancing aircraft operations. 

Thales is a founding member of the 

Clean Sky European program, which 

aims to reduce CO 2 

, nitric oxide, and 

noise emissions of aircraft between now 

and 2020. Thales is coordinating one 

of the program’s main research topics, 

“Systems for Green Operations,” which 

aims to reduce aircraft energy consumption 

through trajectory management, 

notably during the takeoff and landing 

approach phases of flights. 

Thales is also a key player in the European 

program SESAR (Single European 

Sky ATM Research), which is addressing 

the challenges associated with the 

growing demand for air travel and aims 

to improve flight safety while reducing 

the energy consumption of commercial 

aircraft. 

Smarter cities 

Globalization is intensifying competition 

between cities as well as other 

economic players. At the same time, 

with a broader understanding of climate 

change and the risks associated with 

depleting natural resources, cities are 

reassessing their growth models and 

development strategies. 

Thales has been working with some of 

the world’s largest cities for several decades 

now, playing a central role in the 

transformation processes and helping 

to build the smarter urban communities 

of tomorrow. The Group designs 

and develops interoperable supervision 

and hypervision solutions that provide 

operators of transport systems, energy 

networks, and major urban infrastructure 

with a real-time overview of key events 

and parameters. Operators are able to optimize 

flows and configurations, manage 

equipment status, and allocate resources 

to enhance security, boost operational 

efficiency, save energy, and speed decision-making 

processes, thereby improving 

the quality of life of local residents. 

Monitoring the climate 

Thales is a key player in space-based 

Earth observation programs, providing 

high-resolution optical and radar 

imaging systems that promote a better 

understanding of climate change and 

more-effective environmental monitoring. 

Its systems monitor patterns 

of ocean circulation, provide images 

of the planet and its oceans, and also 

collect essential information for predicting 

climate change and monitoring 

vegetation. 

Thales systems provide unprecedented 

quantities of information based on imagery 

of the globe and hyperspectral 

sounding of the atmosphere, helping 

climatologists better understand how 

the climate evolves over time. 

Promoting engagement 

In addition to reducing greenhouse 

gas emissions from its own activities, 

Thales encourages its partners to take 

a responsible attitude toward climate 

issues. For example, Thales chairs, or 

is a member of, several national and 

international working groups related 

to the issue of greenhouse gases. 

Thales is also one of several industry 

partners that supports the university 

chair in greenhouse gas emissions 

monitoring, inaugurated in France in 

December 2011. 


137

WeIDmüLLer 

tHe PrODuCtIOn HaLL aS 

a PaSSIve-enerGY BuILDInG 

By Klaus Hübscher, Weidmüller 

It is not only in the area of products and solutions that Weidmüller strives to maximize energy 

efficiency and conserve resources. The electronics specialist from Detmold also focuses on sustainability 

in its own production processes, its building infrastructure, and in cross-sector technologies. 

The reason for this is that energy efficiency begins long before the electricity socket. 

In doing this, Weidmüller is not just trying 

to keep up with the spirit of the times 

– it has been actively practicing energy 

and resource efficiency for four decades: 

“We are conscious of our obligation and 

responsibility toward future generations,” 

says the CEO, Dr. Peter Köhler. “This has 

influenced our business activities for 

many years on all levels, from the family 

of owners, the Executive Board and 

management through to our colleagues 

in administration and production.” 

Weidmüller also sets high standards 

for sustainability in its own production. 

What began in the 1970s with noise protection 

measures in the stamping and assembly 

lines has since been systematically 

refined: heat recovery systems; integrated 

compressed air control systems; electronic 

ballasts; sophisticated environmental 

management, including structured waste 

separation; and much more have been 

standard at Weidmüller for many years. 

As early as the late 1990s, for example, 

Weidmüller installed a comprehensive 

building management system (BMS) in 

all production sites in Detmold, enabling 

needs-based and energy-efficient control 

of building facilities such as heating and 

ventilation systems. The company also established 

a technical energy management 

system (EnMS) for documenting energy 

flows and consumption (e.g., electricity, 

heat, cooling, and compressed air) at a 

very early stage – in 2009 – and has 

been systematically expanding it ever 

since. After all, consumption can only be 

optimized and minimized if accurate figures 

are available. This effort has proven 

to be very worthwhile: “Every step we 

take in the direction of energy efficiency 

in production has taught us a valuable 

lesson,” explains Köhler. “This knowledge 

and experience was taken into account 

when planning and constructing the 

new ‘Niemeierstraße’ production hall.” 

The new production hall was designed 

without an independent heating system. 

“Waste heat from the production 

machines, compressors, and cooling 

systems is used to heat the building,” 

explains Helene Derksen-Riesen, Head of 

International Facility and Energy Management 

at Weidmüller. “In certain cases, 

for example when no production is taking 

place, the hall can be supplied by a 

neighboring building’s heating system.” 

The construction of the new production 

hall was planned on the basis of 

the latest version of the German Energy 

Conservation Ordinance (EnEV-2007) and 

completed in the spring of 2011. “Under 

the Energy Conservation Ordinance, the 

hall may consume 403 kWh of power 

per square meter per year. According to 

the energy certificate we were issued, it 


Good Practice 

environment 

uses only 187 kWh / m 2 per year,” says 

Derksen-Riesen. This is made possible 

by using additional modern construction 

materials, carefully coordinating the floor 

insulation and employing efficient lighting 

strips and insulated windows. In 2012, 

the additional use of waste water from 

the production machines, the compressor 

system and the cooling machine reduced 

the hall’s energy consumption to only 

22 kWh / m 2 . “This means that it was 

more than 94 percent below the legally 

permissible level specified in the Energy 

Conservation Ordinance, which already 

sets very high efficiency standards. This 

measure alone saves 838 metric tons of 

CO 2 

every year,” explains Derksen-Riesen 

proudly. To put that in context: An average 

mid-range car emits some 2.6 metric 

tons of CO 2 

per year. The reduction in 

the production hall’s annual emissions 

is therefore equivalent to the amount of 

CO 2 

produced by some 320 mid-range 

cars in a year. “In addition, every autumn 

and spring an adjacent production 

and administration building is supplied 

with waste heat from the production 

machines,” Derksen-Riesen adds. 

As well as using waste heat from the 

production machines, compressors, and 

cooling system, further steps have been 

taken to increase the production hall’s 

energy efficiency. In winter, the outdoor 

ramps for the forklift trucks and lorries 

are kept ice-free by using warm water 

from the heat recovery system – in 

the past, these systems ran on electricity, 

and consequently produced almost 

twice as much CO 2 

as today’s solution. 

To reduce losses in transformers and 

power lines, high-efficiency transformers 

were installed in direct proximity to 

the machines using the electricity. This 

allows the length of high-loss, low-voltage 

cables used to be shortened, in favor of 

more efficient medium-voltage cables, 

thus reducing consumption by a further 

three to five percent. As Derksen-Riesen 

says: “Modern, energy-efficient parts were 

used in all technical components we 

installed, including motors, pumps, ventilators, 

and lighting. Taken as a whole, 

the building’s electricity consumption is 

some 730,000 kWh – equivalent to 365 

metric tons of CO 2 

– per year, which is 

less than that of a conventional structure 

with conventional installations.” The staff 

at Weidmüller are not the only ones to 

be proud of the company’s achievements. 

In the spring of 2013, the company was 

awarded the title of “Climate Protection 

Company” by the German Minister 

of Economics and Technology, Philipp 

Rösler, and the Minister for the Environment, 

Peter Altmaier. When it comes to 

energy efficiency, Weidmüller plans to 

stick to the course it has set: “At present, 

we are working on enhancing our ability 

to record the energy consumption of our 

production machines, right down to the 

tiniest level,” says Derksen-Riesen. “Our 

goal is to find out the consumption levels 

of individual machines, in order to make 

For Dr. Peter Köhler, CeO Weidmüller, 

the production hall is part of Weidmüller's 

CSr stategy. 

our processes even more energy-efficient 

in the future.” With this aim in mind, 

Weidmüller has developed and marketed 

its own measuring device, known as the 

Power Monitor, a tool that has already 

been used in the company’s own production 

lines with considerable success. 

With a view to fostering sustainable dialogue, 

Weidmüller shares its knowledge, 

experience, and solutions with other 

companies, and has been active in various 

networks for many years. Weidmüller’s 

passive-energy production hall is the biggest 

individual energy-efficiency / climateprotection 

project generating the highest 

annual CO 2 

savings that the company 

has implemented so far. And yet, even 

this project is only one building block 

in the overriding sustainability strategy. 

“Weidmüller states explicitly that it does 

not view the hall as a flagship project; it is 

simply a part of the overall package of our 

sustainability strategy,” explains Köhler. 

“Although we used only high-efficiency 

components, these have already become 

standard technology. During the planning 

and implementation stages, we took care 

to ensure that all steps can be reproduced 

immediately.” In doing so, Weidmüller 

has created solutions that also help other 

companies to establish energy-efficient 

production systems, thus doubling its 

contribution to sustainability. 


139

DeutSCHe BaHn 

BuSIneSS SeCurItY WOrLD- 

WIDe: tHe neW COmPLIanCe 

rISK atLaS OF 

DeutSCHe BaHn 

By Nicole Knapp, Deutsche Bahn 

Deutsche Bahn (DB) is an international group active in more than 130 countries that 

offers mobility and logistics services worldwide. This gives rise to complex challenges in 

its conduct toward business partners and employees. The DB Compliance Risk Atlas is 

designed to create a clear framework for compliant action in this regard. 

The world is green, yellow, orange, and 

red – with a few gray spaces in between. 

Or at least this is how it looks 

on the maps of Deutsche Bahn’s new 

Compliance Risk Atlas. The colors do 

not indicate political orientations or 

the average temperatures in countries 

around the world. Instead, they provide 

information on corruption, the role of 

economic crime in each country, and 

the status of human rights there. Red 

indicates an extremely high risk exposure; 

green a low one. 

DB is active at some 2,200 sites in more than 130 countries. DB Schenker Logistics, 

with its 15 subsidiaries alone, is present in 100 locations and is now the secondlargest 

transport and logistics service provider in the world. DB Arriva, which runs 

all of DB’s regional transport services outside of Germany, offers bus and rail 

transport in 12 European countries. DB International has successfully carried out 

several thousand projects for transport and infrastructure companies, governments, 

and financial institutions in 107 countries since 1966. Other business units 

have also long been operating beyond German borders. They include DB Sales, 

with offices in India and Australia, and DB Systemtechnik, whose employees are 

sought after as experts for rolling stock technology in China and Ukraine. 

“The maps, which are accompanied by an 

individual report on each country, are 

based on statistical data collected by nine 

well-respected independent institutions,” 

says Werner Grebe, Chief Compliance 

Officer of DB. These institutions include 

Transparency International, the World 

Bank, Amnesty International, the United 

Nations, and the International Labour 

Organization. Deutsche Bahn collected 

the data, analyzed it, and compiled it in 

the DB Compliance Risk Atlas thereby 

reflecting its own risk-based approach 

to compliance work. 


Good Practice 

anti-Corruption 

Business activities of DB Group 2013 

The Atlas covers corruption, economic 

crime, legal certainty, fair competition, 

regulatory environments, reliability of 

financial reporting and auditing, and 

human rights. The list of risks is accompanied 

by a depiction of countermeasures, 

which include adequate compliance 

regulations, training courses, and 

whistle-blowing management. 

“From a compliance point of view, the 

DB Compliance Risk Atlas offers the 

Group a well-structured decision-making 

aid when it is considering whether to 

do business in a country,” Grebe says. 

“For instance, if a business unit receives 

a request for cooperation from a rail 

operator in a country in which the business 

unit is not yet present, it can use 

the Atlas to more quickly and precisely 

assess opportunities and risks.” 

In concrete terms, that means that if 

there is a high level of corruption in 

the country or a considerable risk that 

contractual claims cannot be enforced, 

the corresponding color in the DB Compliance 

Risk Atlas will be red and the 

risks of engaging in business operations 

in this country must be thoroughly 

evaluated. In addition, the heads of 

the business units and service centers 

receive detailed analyses for their areas 

that are designed to assist them in their 

day-to-day business decisions. These 

detailed reports enable the managers 

in helping to make their employees 

aware of these risks and to ultimately 

protect them from potential dangers. 

“Our employees’ own prior experiences 

in the countries are incorporated here 

as well,” says Grebe. “In other words, if 

all the warning signs in regard to corruption 

in Country X are in ‘red,’ the 

business unit awarding contracts there 

will meticulously examine all the bids 

submitted to make sure that everything 

is correct. And if Country Y does not offer 

a high degree of legal certainty, DB will 

be all the more careful to incorporate 

appropriate protective mechanisms in 

contracts there.” 

The Compliance Risk Atlas provides 

DB Group management with a wellfounded 

decision-making basis for carrying 

out international business transactions 

in a legally certain manner. As a 

“dynamic product,” the Atlas is revised 

as needed and updated annually. 

The goal of DB Compliance is to prevent the violation of rules both in Germany 

and abroad and to ensure that DB continues to be a fair and trustworthy business 

partner. The focus of the DB Group’s compliance work is to further develop 

business-oriented compliance risk analyses, customer-oriented information, 

targeted prevention, as well as Group-wide, risk-based compliance management 

with a preventative approach. The Chief Compliance Officer, who bears 

company-wide responsibility, is supported in this process by the corporate 

compliance team and locally established compliance coordinators and compliance 

managers worldwide, who rely on organizational tools such as compliance 

regulations and training courses. 

The DB Group offers employees, business partners, and customers various international 

channels for calling attention to the infringement of regulations. For 

example, the online “BKMS” tool (Business Keeper Monitoring System) offers 

anonymous web-based access for reporting infringements and is available in 

seven languages (German, English, French, Spanish, Italian, Polish, and Russian). 


141

vOLKSWaGen 

COmmunICatInG InteGrItY 

By Dr. Frank Fabian und Dr. Thomas Steg, Volkswagen 

Internal and external communication features prominently in risk management and 

compliance activities at Volkswagen – the company is convinced that communication is just 

as essential for the successful implementation of the code of conduct and anti-corruption 

rules as it is for corporate success in general. 

The Volkswagen Group has set its sights 

on becoming the economic and ecological 

leader among automobile manufacturers 

by 2018. To achieve that, the company 

must harness opportunities to increase 

efficiency and grow further as they present 

themselves along the way, but at 

the same time also manage numerous 

risks. For Volkswagen, sustainable success 

depends to a large extent on a responsible 

and forward-looking approach to 

leveraging its own potential, while at 

the same time handling possible risks. 

As far as the latter are concerned, attention 

is focused in particular on the 

violation of rules, such as incidents of 

corruption or the infringement of human 

rights, environmental protection 

laws, or labor rights. To protect these 

values and respond effectively to these 

risks, the Volkswagen Group pursues a 

holistic, integrative Governance, Risk 

& Compliance (GRC) approach. This approach 

combines the risk-management 

system, the internal control system, and 

the compliance management system, 

thus covering possible areas of risk in a 

systematic and comprehensive manner. 

The objective is not only to identify possible 

risks at an early stage, but also to 

initiate adequate measures to exclude any 

damage to third parties or to the Group. 

Compliance plays a special role in this 

context. At Volkswagen, the term “compliance” 

is understood to mean that all 

the message of the billboard campaign for the 2013 International anti-Corruption Day 

was short and sweet: “Say no – it’s worth it.” 

employees act in accordance with rules. 

Consequently, the most effective way to 

prevent compliance risks is for values to 

be internalized and to become second 

nature for employees. The company 

aims to create an awareness of compliance 

issues and to encourage values 

such as fairness, integrity, and honesty. 

This is achieved through communication 

with employees – for example, by 

strengthening the role-model function 

of management. 


Good Practice 

anti-Corruption 

a compliance app for smartphones 

gives employees on the move tips on 

how to behave in accordance with rules. 

Integrity must therefore be communicated 

both internally and externally – 

using different channels, senders, and 

forms. The “tone from the top,” for example, 

is of elementary importance. 

Employees will not treat the issue with 

the attention it requires if the company’s 

leadership does not regularly send a 

clear message about acting according to 

rules and behaving with integrity. And 

at the same time, the workforce must 

understand exactly what Volkswagen 

means when it calls on its employees to 

observe the code of conduct drawn up 

by the company. Protecting the Group 

brands, their good reputation, and thus 

their past and present success is a central 

task of compliance communication. 

Volkswagen Group employees have reason 

to be proud of their part in this success 

and of the Group’s popular brands. 

To highlight the interaction between 

high-value products, sustainable corporate 

success, and behaving with integrity 

on the part of every individual 

employee, Volkswagen launched an 

awareness campaign in 2012 featuring 

a well-known German actor, who took 

a humorous, slightly tongue-in-cheek 

look at compliance. This relaxed and informal 

style came across well: Instead of 

fueling fears and spreading uncertainty, 

the campaign not only brought a smile 

to employees’ faces, but also gave them 

food for thought. And it fulfilled its 

mission in all respects by encouraging 

employees to find out more. 

Volkswagen sets great store by ease of 

comprehension and a target-group focus 

in its compliance communication. 

Concrete examples and an intensive 

interactive dialog are used to present 

the issue in publications, training sessions, 

and the compliance app for smartphones 

– always easy to understand 

and transparent, and always expressed 

in simple language. “Simpleshows” on 

various compliance topics are currently 

being produced. These animated short 

films consist of mini-clips presented 

in the form of amusing illustrations 

to explain complex content in clear, 

everyday language. 

Further facets of compliance communication 

at Volkswagen include close communication 

with the governing bodies, 

the Group-wide compliance organization, 

and the public. 

Communication with – and information 

for – the executive management and 

the governing bodies is vitally important, 

since both have clearly defined legal obligations. 

They are furnished on a regular 

basis with everything that is required to 

gain an overview of the risk situation of 

the Group – including compliance risks. 

A regularly issued report documents the 

status and activities of the integrated 

GRC organization. 

Both traditional and innovative communication 

channels are used to maintain 

an effective network for the members of 

the GRC organization and their issues 

within a large group such as Volkswagen 

and to foster exchange, for example 

among the brands, with a view to establishing 

a common understanding of risk. 

An internal award for particularly successful 

GRC measures will be presented 

for the first time this year. The invitation 

to participate in the competition for this 

award triggered friendly rivalry among 

colleagues, especially in the 12 brands 

belonging to the Volkswagen Group. 

The best ideas will be communicated 

throughout the Group and reviewed for 

their application potential in a Group 

context. 

Volkswagen also communicates with 

third parties on GRC topics: Detailed 

information on measures, activities, and 

the organization can be found on the 

internet as well as in the Sustainability 

Report and the Annual Report published 

by Volkswagen AG. 

Integrity in all relations between the 

Volkswagen Group and its stakeholders 

lies at the heart of a corporate culture 

that is characterized by a pronounced 

awareness of the interaction between 

commercial success, sustainable development, 

and the observation of core 

values. In this process, communication 

in the form of information and dialog 

is the key to success. The goal of all 

GRC communication activities must be 

to convince employees and managers 

that acting in accordance with rules and 

developing a risk-aware mindset bring 

benefits for every individual and for the 

company as a whole – and to encourage 

them to play a proactive role. 

Moreover, the public respects a company 

that sets itself apart from the rest 

through compliant behavior, and interprets 

such conduct as an element of fair 

competition. 

The company can only attain its stated 

goals by practicing comprehensive risk 

management that factors in communicative 

aspects at every stage. To achieve 

that, communication is a common thread 

that weaves its way through the work of 

the GRC organization in the Volkswagen 

Group. That is as it should be, because 

if compliance and risk issues were to be 

viewed solely in terms of legal or mathematical 

logic, one key, success-critical 

aspect would be missing – namely how 

to anchor the principles in the corporate 

culture and thereby translate them into 

day-to-day interaction. 


143

GOOD PraCtICe 

OveraLL, tHe GLOBaL COmPaCt PurSueS tWO 

COmPLementarY OBJeCtIveS: 

1| mainstream the ten Principles in business activities around the world 

2| Catalyze actions in support of broader un goals, including the millennium 

Development Goals (mDGs) 

144 


CSr manaGement 

146 

148 

150 

152 

BaSF 

Bosch 

Deutsche telekom 

the tmS Group 

DeveLOPment 

154 

156 

160 

164 

166 

168 

aCCIOna 

aYa Bank 


nestlé 

Sayga 

SK 

FInanCIaL marKetS 

170 

Bradesco 


145

BaSF 

COOPeratIOn BetWeen BaSF 

anD eurOPean Water 

PartnerSHIP On SuStaInaBLe 

Water manaGement 

Water is a vital resource – for both humanity and for the chemical industry. BASF uses water 

as a coolant, solvent, and cleaning agent, as well as in its products. At the same time, BASF 

offers its customers solutions that help to purify water, use it more efficiently, and reduce contamination. 

In order to further develop these solutions, BASF works closely with experts from 

various fields, while ensuring that the sustainable use of water remains a key priority here. 

By Dr. Brigitte Dittrich-Krämer and Dr. Andrea Stögbauer, BASF 

New opportunities can arise through the 

exchange of information and partnerships 

between companies and private organizations, 

which will also create advances 

in water management with regard to 

sustainability. 

BASF takes an active role in the 

European Water Partnership 

BASF has been cooperating with the European 

Water Partnership since 2008. This 

independent organization was founded at 

the initiative of the European Commission 

in 2006 and promotes sustainable water 

management. Working as partners, water 

experts from BASF as well as other representatives 

from industry, governments, 

and non-governmental organizations 

developed a European-wide standard that 

sets out the fundamental principles and 

criteria for sustainable water management. 

The result is the European Water 

Stewardship (EWS) Standard, which enables 

companies from various sectors as 

well as agricultural operations to examine 

how sustainably they use water resources. 

With this standard, businesses and agricultural 

operations can assess and improve 

their water management based on the criteria 

of water abstraction volumes, water 

quality, conservation of biodiversity, and 

water governance. BASF tested the EWS 

Standard in 2010 in a six-month pilot experiment 

at its largest site in Ludwigshafen 

and made recommendations on how the 

standard could be improved. The official 

launch of the EWS Standard took place in 

Brussels in November 2011 at a ceremony 

attended by Janez Potočnik, European 

Commissioner for the Environment. 

The application of the EWS Standard has 

many benefits for companies. They receive 

a clear picture of their water management 

because risks – for example, dependency 

on a single limited water source – and 

areas for potential improvement are identified. 

The EWS Standard includes 50 

indicators, addressing the four principles 

of sustainable water abstraction, ensuring 

good water status, protection of high 

conservation areas, and equitable water 

governance. A key aspect of the EWS 

Standard involves looking beyond the 

gates of the individual site. By including 

other users and expanding sustainable water 

management, the effectiveness of the 

water stewardship activities is increased. 

The goal of sustainable water 

management 

BASF has set itself the goal of introducing 

sustainable water management at its production 

sites located in water stress areas 

by 2020. These are regions where more 

than 60 percent of the available water is 

abstracted by humans. One in five BASF 

production sites is located in a water 

stress area. The EWS Standard provides 

the basis for the assessment and contains 


Good Practice 

CSr management 

Water availability and water use worldwide 

Water availability and water use worldwide 

4,740 m 3 

average volume of 

water available per 

capita per year in 

europe 

13,400 m 3 




the united States 

and mexico 

2,470 m 3 




the Caribbean 

2,970 m 3 




asia Pacific 

7,200 m 3 




Latin america 

1,000 m 3 




Sub-Saharan africa 

500 m 3 

average volume of water 

available per capita per 

year in the arab World 

total water use 

areas of high water stress 

Sources: www.unwater.org; Areas With High Water 

Stress, changed according to: Pfister et al., 2009; 

uneSCO, United Nations World Water Development 

Report – Water for People, Water for Life, 2003; 

FaO, Water Availability by Region, aquastat, 2013 

What are water stress areas? 

Water stress areas are regions where water is 

a scarce resource and where more than 60 % of 

the available water is abstracted by humans. the 

most important factors leading to water scarcity 

are: low precipitation, high temperatures, low air 

humidity, unfavorable soil properties and high 

water abstraction rates. 

total water use per country 

Scale of the graphic 

761,000 millionen m 3 / year 




< 1,000 millionen m 3 / year 

1,150 m 3 




australia 

specific guidance for situations where 

the existing water management system 

needs to be adapted. BASF introduced this 

voluntary industrial standard at nearly all 

of its European sites in water stress areas. 

Other BASF goals related to water include 

reducing the supply of drinking water and 

reducing emissions to water at production 

sites worldwide. Compared to the 

baseline year 2010, BASF has lowered the 

supply of drinking water by 25.3 percent. 

Between 2002 and 2013, BASF reduced 

emissions of organic substances by 78.5 

percent, of nitrogen by 86.8 percent, and 

of heavy metals by 64.2 percent. 

Certification for first chemical site 

BASF’s production site in Tarragona, Spain, 

demonstrates how sustainable water management 

can be put into practice. Due to 

the site’s location in a water stress area, 

Tarragona decided to become the first 

site to apply the EWS Standard. Experts 

collected data on water abstraction and 

release as well as water quality at the 

site and in the surrounding area. Several 

questions had to be answered: What is the 

source of the water? How much water is 

needed for production? Where does the 

water flow after being treated in the site’s 

own wastewater treatment facility? Are 

there any negative effects on the groundwater 

table or nearby protected areas? 

The Tarragona site also uses water treated 

in the municipal wastewater treatment 

plant for its production. This reuse of 

water reduces the amount of water 

that has to be abstracted from the river, 

groundwater, and the sea. Investments 

in closed-circuit cooling systems and the 

reuse of steam condensate lower the site’s 

water demand. Furthermore, Tarragona 

has a comprehensive system to monitor 

water quality in the discharge from its 

wastewater treatment plant. 

In recognition of this sustainable approach 

to water, in May 2013, BASF became 

the first chemical company to achieve 

gold-level certification according to the 

European Water Stewardship Standard 

for the Tarragona site. In order to attain 

this certificate, auditors from the thirdparty 

certification body TÜV Nord Integra 

assessed the entire water management 

performance of the site, from extraction 

of water at its source to its reintroduction 

in downstream water bodies. 

The cooperatively developed EWS Standard 

demonstrates how water – a vital 

resource – can be managed in a way that 

is socially, economically, and environmentally 

responsible. With the introduction 

of sustainable water management, BASF 

is also making an important contribution 

to fulfilling its purpose: “We create 

chemistry for a sustainable future.” 

www.basf.com / www.ewp.eu 


147

BOSCH 

PrInCIPLeS OF LeGaL 

COmPLIanCe 

By Bernhard Schwager and Remigiusz Skiba, Bosch 

Companies invest a great deal of effort in putting written principles and value systems into 

practice. This might be in relation to customer orientation, openness, respect, or honesty, 

for example. If they are to become orientation points in everyday practice, they must be implemented 

and made routine by means of guidelines, processes, incentive systems, and other 

organizational measures. But this is only the first step. Leadership behavior, the example set 

by top management, and clear communication of the culture of values are of the essence. 

Dr. volkmar Denner, Chairman of the 

Board of management of robert Bosch 

GmbH, says: “Legality is one of the 

fundamental values of our company, 

and extremely important for us as 

members of the board of management.” 

From its modest beginnings as the “Workshop 

for Precision Mechanics and Electrical 

Engineering” established by Robert 

Bosch in 1886, the Bosch Group has developed 

into a leading global supplier of 

technology and services. Throughout its 

history, the company has been guided by 

the values and ethics of its founder. These 

values and ethics include the principle of 

legality in particular. Robert Bosch himself 

wrote in 1921: “In the long term, an honest 

and fair approach to doing business 

will always be the most profitable one. 

And the business world holds such an 

approach in much higher esteem than is 

generally imagined.” These words express 

a conviction to which we still feel committed 

today: the conviction that reliability, 

credibility, and legality are indispensable 

elements of our business success. 

This firm commitment unites all Bosch 

associates worldwide, irrespective of national 

or cultural boundaries. Legality is 

one of those fundamental values of our 

company, and of paramount importance 

for the members of the board of management. 

All associates are expected to strictly 

adhere to legal requirements at all times. 

Violations of the law are not tolerated at 

Bosch, and this applies without exceptions. 

To emphasize the importance of this 

principle, the company’s attitude toward 

legal requirements and ethical issues is 

summed up in the Bosch Code of Business 

Conduct. The Code of Business Conduct 

is available to all associates as guidance 

for their conduct, and outlines the basic 

standards we seek to adhere to in our 

work. The Code of Business Conduct and 

the Bosch values provide an excellent 

foundation for creating the trust that 

plays a key role in our business success. 

Compliance at Bosch 

Bosch is a participant in the UN Global 

Compact and its Ten Principles and has 

thereby committed to avert and combat 

corruption. Compliance at Bosch means 

that all business activities of the Bosch 

Group and its associates must comply 

with legal requirements, the Code of Business 

Conduct, and any further internal 

guidelines (“Compliance Requirement”). 

All associates are responsible for ensuring 

that they adhere to the Compliance 

Requirement. Managers are obliged to 

take organizational measures to ensure 

the Compliance Requirement is respected 

within their areas of responsibility. In 

particular, they must ensure that the 

associates are familiar and in compliance 

with the regulations. Infringements are 

not tolerated and will incur disciplinary 

measures irrespective of the associate’s 

status in the company hierarchy. 


Good Practice 


When a report is received, it is immediately 

forwarded to the attention of the 

responsible compliance officer in the 

region or country concerned. The compliance 

officer may involve other specialist 

departments at Bosch in the investigations. 

Once the investigations are completed, 

appropriate measures are taken, as necessary, 

to remedy the violation. 

Training 

As well as ensuring compliance with the 

legality principle, Bosch has also set itself 

the task of eliminating dangers to people 

and the environment, limiting its influences 

on the environment, and making 

economical use of resources. Processes, 

manufacturing facilities, and operating 

resources must comply with the applicable 

legal and internal requirements 

in respect of regulations concerning occupational 

health and safety, fire, and 

environmental protection. In addition, 

the protection of our own associates 

plays a very important role. We respect 

and protect the personal dignity of every 

individual and do not tolerate inadmissible 

discrimination. We categorically reject 

child labor within the Bosch organization 

and among our business partners. 

Reporting compliance cases 

It is up to every Bosch associate and 

every Bosch business partner to report 

any possible violations of the Compliance 

Requirement, in this way helping to limit 

the consequences of such violations and 

preventing similar misconduct from 

happening in the future. Such reports 

can be made to: 

• a superior 

• local compliance officers 

• the Bosch compliance hotline 

• directly to the compliance department 

Reports can be made to the compliance 

officer or the Bosch compliance hotline 

whenever the associate wishes to avoid 

the involvement of a superior. The compliance 

officers in the respective regions 

and countries offer a neutral point of 

contact. Persons who report possible 

compliance issues to the best of their 

knowledge and in good faith do not have 

to fear any disadvantageous actions on 

the part of the company as a result of 

the report. If the person reporting still 

wishes to remain anonymous for fear of 

incurring a personal disadvantage as a 

result of the report, they may preserve 

their anonymity by reporting a possible 

violation of the Compliance Requirement 

via the Bosch compliance hotline, 

for example. 

Associates are offered a broad portfolio 

of internal training courses in the form 

of web-based and face-to-face training 

sessions. The training courses offered 

are compulsory for certain groups of 

associates and must be repeated on a 

regular basis. Compulsory web-based 

training courses that address the concept 

of compliance include the following 

kinds of topics: 

• cartel law 

• product liability 

• export controls 

• Code of Business Conduct 

Verification and supervisory 

mechanisms 

Another key component of the Bosch 

risk-management system is the internal 

auditing department. It encourages 

risk-awareness and helps to minimize 

risks. The internal auditing department 

provides worldwide support to the board 

of management as an independent auditor 

of the board’s performance of its 

managerial and monitoring functions, 

in particular with regard to the legality, 

compliance, and economic efficiency of 

business processes. This involves applying 

globally valid standards in consideration 

of regional, legal, cultural, and Boschspecific 

requirements to internal audit 

processes, and constantly improving them. 

The following are some of the supervisory 

mechanisms that have been put in 

place to oversee operations: 

• principle of dual control 

• personnel rotation in sensitive areas 

• separation of operational and supervisory 

functions. 


149

DeutSCHe teLeKOm 

SuStaInaBILItY In tHe 

SuPPLY CHaIn: a CruCIaL 

COmPOnent OF COrPOrate 

reSPOnSIBILItY 

By Antonio Luz-Veloso and Vera Heyes, Deutsche Telekom 

Deutsche Telekom conducts business in more than 50 countries. This presents opportunities 

for companies, particularly in supplier management, but it also poses risks. To ensure that 

its supply chain has a sustainable focus, Deutsche Telekom has established a systematic 

supplier management system. As a founding member of the Joint Audit Cooperation (JAC), 

Deutsche Telekom is committed to shaping sustainable relationships with suppliers. Based 

on a standardized methodology, JAC examines shared suppliers worldwide, with a particular 

focus on Asia, South Korea, Eastern Europe, and South America. 

In 2010, Deutsche Telekom hired external 

auditors to further professionalize 

its social audit processes. As a result, it 

became possible to improve the quality of 

the assessments and audit a much larger 

number of suppliers. In addition, a newly 

developed risk-matrix standardized the 

selection process for particularly at-risk 

suppliers. The primary components of 

a social audit include: 

• a general risk-assessment for suppliers 

• an assessment of the supplier’s selfdisclosure 

• direct interchange to develop the suppliers 

• ongoing review of the local situation 

To promote the international implementation 

of Corporate Responsibility (CR) 

at all levels of the supply chain, Deutsche 

Telekom founded JAC together with 

France Telecom and Telecom Italia. The 

overreaching goal was to help shape all 

supplier relationships to be long-term, 


Good Practice 


trusting, and uniform. The cooperation is 

open to all companies in the industry and 

launched its first campaigns as early as 

June 2010. The concept has since spread: 

As a result of its successful work over the 

past five years, JAC has now grown to include 

ten telecommunications providers. 

Monitoring and dialog 

BeneFItS OF JaC 

memBerSHIP 

the activities of JaC help both 

suppliers and telecommunications 

companies to optimize their processes 

and costs. 

1. each supplier only receives one 

request for a CSr audit, whose 

results are consolidated and 

shared among all the telecommunications 

providers. 

2. Suppliers also benefit from the 

application of a common, standardized 

methodology for the 

entire audit process. 

3. the telecommunications companies 

optimize their CSr assessments 

and the follow-up process 

by exchanging best practices. 

The key to the approach taken by 

Deutsche Telekom and the other JAC 

members is a close combination of monitoring 

and dialog. “We follow a cooperative 

approach in the integration of our 

suppliers,” says Birgit Klesper, Senior 

Vice President Group Transformational 

Change and Corporate Responsibility 

at Deutsche Telekom AG. “For us at 

Telekom, it is important to know that 

our business partners are supporting new 

ways of achieving sustainable business 

practices. We need this information to 

be able to effectively improve the supply 

chain.” To make the process transparent 

and results-oriented, external NGOs, 

business initiatives, and research institutions 

are also included. The common 

objective is the ongoing improvement of 

the supply chains toward more responsibility 

and sustainability. 

A general aim is to simplify the selection 

process for suppliers. This applies 

both to the telecommunications companies 

– which benefit from improved 

structures for the monitoring and assessment 

process as the result of uniform 

standards and synergy effects – and to 

the suppliers. The latter often produce 

for a number of different consumers in 

Europe and North America and were previously 

subject to a number of different 

audit processes. In contrast, if they work 

together with the JAC, one assessment 

is enough for ten of the largest telecommunications 

companies in the world. This 

standardized approach saves time and 

also helps to spread solution approaches 

among the individual supplier groups. 

The approach of the Joint Audit 

Cooperation 

The foundations for JAC’s work are defined 

by a central steering committee, 

which meets twice per year and defines 

guidelines for further procedures. As 

early as the initial meetings, it was very 

important to Deutsche Telekom for all 

involved companies to appoint representatives 

from upper management of 

the respective CSR and sourcing departments 

to the committee. 

In its current form, the initiative’s work 

consists largely of a local audit program, 

including tracking of planned corrective 

measures. All members are individually 

responsible for conducting the complete 

audit process for a supplier, in the name 

of the Cooperation. Each JAC member is 

assigned the same number of suppliers. 

The local audits are carried out according 

to the following, jointly defined criteria: 

• The audits are carried out by international 

auditing firms that are specialized 

in the specific social and environmental 

aspects in the respective country. 

• Confidentiality agreements are signed 

with the suppliers, ensuring that the 

audit results are disclosed only to the 

JAC members. 

• The checklist defined by the JAC members 

is based on the SA 8000 and ISO 

14001 standards, along with site audits. 

• The documented results are presented 

in the final report. 

• Cooperation with the suppliers is based 

on the common awareness that CSR 

risk-management is a decisive factor 

for sustainable development. 

• When the audit results are available, 

corrective measures to rectify the vulnerabilities 

addressed in the audit report 

are agreed upon with the suppliers 

and their compliance is tracked. 

Successful development 

A total of 112 audits were carried out 

worldwide by the end of 2013. The 

questionnaires used for the audits contained 

more than 4,000 questions in 

total and had an impact on more than 

400,000 employees at the audited companies. 

The most significant findings 

were in the areas of working hours, 

occupational safety, and pay. Should 

the auditors identify grievances at a supplier, 

the correction procedure applies. 

Deutsche Telekom and JAC do not aim 

to shut out the suppliers, but instead to 

accompany them on their path toward 

sustainable business management. To 

this end, measures are defined jointly 

and progress is reviewed at regular intervals. 

Individual problems can often be 

corrected in a matter of days, whereas 

suppliers are given more time for larger 

interventions – such as corrections to 

working time models. “When it comes 

to working hours, in particular, we 

expect the involved companies to be 

compliant with local laws and international 

standards,” explains Antonio 

Luz Veloso, Senior Expert for Sustainable 

Supply Chain Management at 

Deutsche Telekom. He continues, “We 

want tangible results that are effective 

in the long term. We acknowledge that 

the changeover process can take several 

months. Accordingly, we define clear 

targets and milestones for this process, 

which we review regularly.” 


151

tHe tmS GrOuP 

CamBODIa anD vIetnam: 

LInKInG StaKeHOLDer 

enGaGement tO 

CSr-PrOGramS 

By Jeffrey Revels, The TMS Group 

For nearly three decades, the TMS Group has been at the forefront of the fashion industry 

as a globally-based fashion and apparel innovator, with core competencies in research and 

development, product design, fashion-trend analysis, and production sourcing / quality 

management. With operational offices in seven countries, the TMS Group customer-base 

spans every continent. In the first quarter of 2013, the TMS Group expanded its global 

presence and operations to Cambodia and Vietnam. For more than a decade, sustainability 

and ethical sourcing have been integral parts of the TMS Group’s business strategy, shaping 

policies and procedures that extend throughout the supply chain. 

CSR as a dynamic business element 

It was paramount to incorporate all aspects 

of a framework for corporate social 

responsibility (CSR) into business development 

plans for Cambodia and Vietnam. 

This aspect began during the concept and 

feasibility phases and extended through 

to the operational startup phase. This also 

included major tactical (daily) and strategic 

(long-term) planning and execution. 

Understanding and identifying (current 

and potential) stakeholder contributions, 

desires, and rationales with respect to CSR 

was a key component in establishing the 

working CSR doctrine and framework that 

was extended to Cambodia and Vietnam. 

This framework is also aligned with 

strategic and business objectives and is 

consistent with the TMS Group’s core 

values. Furthermore, the framework 

is unique, in that it resides within the 

realm of moral obligations, or a “higher 

authority” of standardized principles, going 

beyond adherence to the respective 

international and local laws. 

Involving stakeholders in decisionmaking 

processes is not confined to 

CSR development. This methodology 

is a tool used by private and public 

organizations to develop a thorough 

understanding and mutual agreements 

to solutions on complex issues or matters 

of broad concern. The TMS Group 

employs this process internally for similarly 

related issues to include strategy 

development. 

The concept of stakeholder engagement 

is part of the continuous dialogue for 

stakeholder inclusion in the development 

of the TMS regions of Cambodia 

and Vietnam. This was done with the 

understanding that there is no one-sizefits-all 

with respect to CSR. Furthermore, 

it was of supreme importance to identify 

all major stakeholders within the sphere 

of influence. The late English poet John 

Donne wrote “No man is an island,” and 

hence the same is true for the TMS Group 

or any corporation. There is a natural 

connection between the idea of CSR 

and an organization’s stakeholders. The 

TMS Group has affirmed that the concept 

of stakeholders personalizes the 

social responsibilities for a company. 

This is achieved by clearly defining the 

specific groups and individuals that the 

TMS Group must consider in its CSR 

orientation, namely new countries and 

new players. 


Good Practice 


Government 

Community 

Groups 

Investors & 

Shareholders 

Banking 

and Credit 

NGO 

different. Developing a comprehensive 

understanding of our stakeholders in the 

two countries was paramount in shaping 

CSR, its links to business objectives, and 

in creating specific regional initiatives. 

Factories 

& Material 

Suppliers 

Competitors 

Trade 

Association 

Figure 1: ranges of stakeholder entities 

Figure 1 sets forth 12 major and comprehensive 

stakeholder categories that 

were identified as key elements to both 

CSR and business development processes. 

Of noteworthy consideration, 

production suppliers comprised nearly 

40 percent of stakeholder participants. 

However, total membership spans nine 

separate and distinct business and operational 

categories. As a result, a healthy 

balance is maintained. 

Methods of stakeholder engagement 

and feedback 

There is a wide range of methods for engaging 

with different stakeholder groups, 

and this varies within the operational 

/ country regions, too. For example, one 

method that TMS uses to communicate 

with suppliers and the local communities 

– in both existing and new regions 

of sourcing – includes our CSR social 

compliance self-evaluation process. This 

is the process in which suppliers identify 

their CSR and business strengths, weaknesses, 

and key opportunities to boost 

their CSR certifications. In order to be 

successful, the process requires openness 

and transparency from stakeholders. 

Employees 

Union 

Workers 

It is also important to note that there are 

significant differences between suppliers, 

businesses, and their stakeholders. 

This is evident even within individual 

stakeholder groups. This process of stakeholder 

engagement is further complicated 

when dealing with two separate countries 

such as Cambodia and Vietnam. Despite 

being neighboring countries, each is 

different with respect to cultural norms, 

demographics, and governmental and 

socioeconomic conditions. Even within 

each country’s regional business landscape, 

a wide range of views and inputs 

are present within stakeholder groups. 

Utilizing guiding principles 

Customers 

Customer 

Advocacy 

In order to create effective stakeholder engagement, 

a set of five Guiding Principles 

were identified and used to galvanize the 

process. These principles are closely linked 

to our core values and corporate culture. 

Principle 1: Identify and know your stakeholders 

The garment industry is one in which 

different suppliers may be making similar 

or identical products; methods of engagement 

required might be completely 

Principle 2: Initiate the process as early 

as possible and develop a sustainable implementation 

plan 

Including stakeholders in the decisionmaking 

process during the early stages 

of our launch into Cambodia and Vietnam 

provided an opportunity to forge a 

sustainable CSR plan, not only in terms 

of philosophy, but also in terms of scope, 

objectives, and effectiveness. 

Principle 3: Reactive and open 

Regardless of the circumstances, a “reactive 

and open” approach is needed. Engagement 

is a two-way process that respects 

the input of the stakeholders and 

allows for mutual learning by both parties. 

Stakeholder contributions benefit the 

performance of CSR, the business objectives 

of TMS, as well as the new regions. 

Principle 4: Be inclusive 

It is critical to be inclusive in stakeholder 

engagement. This would include suppliers 

or other groups that may have had poor 

performance records, used confrontational 

approaches, or even had limited communication 

capabilities for such endeavors 

– such as businesses that lack employees 

with English or local language skills. This 

is particularly true in Cambodia, where 

many factories of foreign investors have 

been transplanted from mainland China. 

Principle 5: Transparent and trusting 

Transparency and trust are interrelated 

and constitute the building blocks of a 

successful stakeholder engagement process. 

They are the basis for understanding, 

generating confidence in the process 

and promoting a positive outcome. They 

are fostered by mutually agreed-upon 

rules and mechanisms. With respect to 

our TMS Group CSR program, this is particularly 

important, since suppliers are 

often asked to provide access to certain 

sensitive aspects about their financial 

and production performance. 


153

aCCIOna 

aCCIOna eXPOrtS 

SuStaInaBILItY 

By Juan Ramón Silva Ferrada, ACCIONA 

ACCIONA’s business model is tightly linked to sustainability. 

ACCIONA’s 2015 Sustainability Master Plan states that each 

new international project must be backed up by a social 

impact assessment. The point is to ensure respectful and 

efficient interaction with local communities, mitigate 

risks, and improve the company’s relationships with the 

communities where it operates. As a flagship of ACCIONA’s 

commitment to the local residents of project areas, one 

could do no better than to look to the Mexican state of 

Oaxaca, where the company has four wind farms, and to 

Brisbane, Australia, where ACCIONA is participating in the 

construction and operation of the Legacy Way Tunnel. 

ACCIONA’s social initiatives are adapted to 

local needs, but they all shared a common 

denominator: Everything was done based 

on a thorough knowledge of the communities 

in question and on the search for ongoing 

dialogue with local residents in order 

to contribute to community development. 

ACCIONA México: A model of 

involvement with local communities 

Oaxaca is one of the least-developed states 

in Mexico. However, the region of the 

Isthmus of Tehuantepec, in Oaxaca, has 

terrific wind potential. ACCIONA Energía 

has four wind farms in the region (a total 

of 556 MW, enough power to satisfy the 

needs of 1,300,000 homes), and has more 

renewable energy capacity installed than 

any other company in Mexico. 

As part of its Sustainability Master Plan, 

when ACCIONA set up shop in Oaxaca, 

it shouldered a commitment with local 

communities to manage the social impacts 

of its business responsibly. But how 

could it apply that philosophy effectively 

to real life in Oaxaca? 

The first thing that sets ACCIONA’s social 

responsibility initiatives apart is that they 

are based on regular studies of target 

populations’ needs. Using the findings 

from consultations, the company has 

undertaken a series of actions organized 

according to a scheme called the Social Action 

Plan, which aims to align ACCIONA’s 

social contribution with local needs. 

For instance, in the health area, ACCIONA 

is cooperating with the Mexican Foundation 

for Family Planning and the 

Secretary of Health for the State of 

Oaxaca in campaigns to prevent and 

detect cervical and uterine cancer in 

women, and prostate cancer in men and 

to avoid unwanted pregnancies and HIV 

transmission in teens and young adults. 

A landmark in ACCIONA’s social contribution 

in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec 

is the Eco-efficient Community Centre. 

The center was built according to the 

principles of bioclimatic architecture, so 

it is energetically sustainable. It serves 

as a multiple use venue for health talks 

and workshops that ACCIONA organizes 

in cooperation with the Mexican Foundation 

for Family Planning. 

ACCIONA’s environmental commitment 

was also embodied in reforestation campaigns, 

through which more than 150 

hectares of lowland forest were replanted 

in cooperation with the National Commission 

for Protected Natural Areas. 

ACCIONA is also working to promote 

education as a basic right. The company 

provides scholarships at various levels 

of the educational system for budding 

engineers and specialists in wind energy. 

It also equips local women with tools 


Good Practice 

Development 

for self-employment, as with the Huipil 

Clothes Embroidery Workshop; after 

the workshop, the company advises 

participants on how to market their 

handiwork. 

ACCIONA is helping to refurbish several 

rural schools and provide them with the 

latest technologies, as well as educating 

kids in ecosystems and biodiversity awareness 

and behavioural best practices 

through its Sustainability Workshop, 

which this year provided sustainability 

education support for 2,000 students, 

who also visited the substations and wind 

farms ACCIONA has in their region. 

Australia: Spanish company sets an 

example in the Antipodes 

As part of the Transcity consortium in 

2010, ACCIONA was selected to build 

the Legacy Way Tunnel in the Australian 

city of Brisbane. The project consisted 

of designing and building the tunnel 

and operating it for 10 years. This is a 

twin-bore tunnel with two lanes in each 

tube, running beneath the surface at a 

depth of up to 40 meters. Each tube is 

4.3 kilometers long and approximately 

12 meters in diameter. 

Right from the start, the people who 

drew up the project and its attendant 

job-planning work factored in the need 

to respect the mobility needs of public 

transport, private vehicles, and pedestrians, 

and to blend the project into the 

city with a design that would conserve 

and highlight the importance of the 

neighboring Mount Coot-tha Botanic 

Gardens. 

The tunnel is a major piece of infrastructure, 

so ACCIONA also incorporated an 

action plan that not only is minimizing 

the dreaded nuisances usually inherent 

in construction work, but is also actually 

turning the impact into something 

positive that benefits local residents. 

The basis for succeeding at this kind of 

challenge is to keep up extremely fluid 

dialogue, organized in the form of regular 

meetings with the representatives of the 

nearly three thousand inhabitants of the 

area nearby and one-off information 

campaigns run door to door, by personal 

phone calls, and by letters. In addition, 

residents have a 24-hour hotline to call 

in their questions, and a Visitors’ Centre 

with personal service representatives, 

where local people can use interactive 

systems to see works progress, 3-D models 

of what the final result will look like, a 

simulator showing what working in a 

tunnel-boring machine is like, amongst 

others. A number of entertainment activities 

have been established as well, such 

as outdoor cinema shows, community 

barbeques, and open-house opportunities, 

in the effort to thank residents for 

their patience in the face of possible 

inconveniences. 

But informing local residents and listening 

to their concerns is not enough. The 

company’s commitment to local communities 

requires it to make a real effort 

to minimize environmental impacts and 

the inconveniences construction creates, 

such as noise and vibrations. To do this, 

the company has made its R&D structure 

available to the project. This has enabled 

some innovative solutions to be introduced, 

such as an in-tunnel transport 

system that reduces the amount of truck 

traffic on the surface, thus creating less 

noise and dust and avoiding 190,946 

metric tons of CO 2 

emissions. A special 

acoustic shed has been set up, too, to 

reduce noise at the tunnel mouths, and 

a new mix of cement has been used 

that minimizes transport of goods and 

reduces environmental impacts. 

In addition, the consortium is building a 

4-hectare expansion of Mount Coot-tha 

Botanic Gardens; it will replant the forested 

areas affected by the project, and 

it will plant more than 2,000 trees of 

native woods in the Simpsons Falls area. 


155

aYa BanK 

tHe BanK everYOne Can 

truSt anD reLY On 

By May Myat Thu, AYA Bank 

AYA Bank 

AYA Bank has strived to become a “trusted partner” for everyone in the community and all 

its stakeholders, as its slogan indicates. To effectively become a partner that everyone trusts, 

AYA Bank believes in committing to the Ten Principles of the United Nations Global Compact 

as part of its strategy and practice, focusing on fulfilling its corporate social responsibilities 

to the community it serves. 


Good Practice 

Development 

At AYA Bank, the slogan “Your Trusted 

Partner” is a value that everyone at the 

Bank holds. Since its inception in 2010, 

the Bank has strived to be a trusted 

partner that everyone in the community 

can rely on – not only to fulfill their 

banking needs, but also to be a positive 

force in the community it serves. 

To help enforce its commitments to the 

community as a whole, AYA Bank became 

a participant of the UNGC in 2012 and 

has been incorporating the Ten Principles 

of the UNGC into its operations and 

strategies since then. AYA Bank, working 

together with Ayeyarwady Foundation, 

which fronts the Bank’s corporate social 

responsibility (CSR) activities, initially 

focused mainly on the healthcare and 

education sectors. Moving forward, the 

Bank plans to achieve and fulfill as many 

of the Ten Principles as possible. 

Encouraging the youths 

The youths of today are the future leaders 

of tomorrow. AYA Bank believes it is 

important to educate them about the 

importance of utilizing banking and financial 

services in this stage of their lives. 

To encourage this, AYA Bank started 

a campaign to reach out to university 

students. AYA Bank works with several 

universities across the country and sponsors 

university student cards, which are 

also used as ATM cards. This promotes 

cashless transactions and also allows the 

students to contribute to the economy 

as a whole, since the banking sector is 

fundamental to a country’s economy. 

AYA Bank has worked with five universities 

in 2013 / 2014, producing a total of 

1,944 student cards, which cost more 

than 6 million Myanmar kyats in total. 

The Bank plans to continue to reach out 

to more universities. In addition to promoting 

the use of banking and financial 

services, AYA Bank sets up booths in the 

respective universities to allow students 

to apply for other services. 

Enhancing lives – Improving the 

education sector 

Education has always been important. 

AYA Bank, in its own capacity, attempts 

to fulfill one aspect of the UNGC Principles 

on Human Rights by ensuring that 

people have the opportunity to learn. 

The Bank’s CSR activities – supported 

by the Ayeyarwady Foundation – in the 

education sector include building and 

donating to schools across the country; 

offering educational scholarships; and 

building and donating libraries to encourage 

reading. 


157

aYa BanK 

Health is wealth – CSR activities in 

the healthcare sector 

In March 2011, Ayeyarwady Bank – together 

with its parent company, Max 

(Myanmar) Group of Companies, and 

the Ayeyarwady Foundation – donated 

a 550-bed pediatric hospital in Yangon. 

To ensure that the cleanliness of the 

hospital is well-maintained, members of 

AYA Bank’s workforce volunteer at the 

hospital grounds and engage in weekly 

cleaning activity. AYA Bank also works 

with the Foundation to reach out to the 

needy in the healthcare sector, such as 

with financial contributions. 

Ayeyarwady Foundation 

Apart from contributing to the activities 

of Ayeyarwady Foundation, AYA Bank 

also places Foundation donation boxes 

in all of its branches nationwide. This 

allows our customers to contribute to 

the activities of the Foundation that 

reach out to the needy. This activity 

was started in July 2013 and, to date, 

more than 3 million Myanmar kyats 

have been received in donations. In the 

years to come, AYA Bank will further 

improve the channels for donations by 

giving customers who wish to donate 

to the Foundation the ability to use the 

Bank’s ATMs. 

As part of our initiative to improve the 

healthcare sector, Ayeyarwady Foundation 

has also donated a total of MMK 

300 Mil (up to date) for medical treat- 

aYa BanK’S BLOOD DOnatIOn DrIve 

Give Blood, Give Life – AYA Bank actively 

participates in annual blood donation 

drives and organized the Third Blood 

Donation Drive in Yangon, in conjunction 

with the Bank’s third anniversary. 

At the Third Blood Donation Drive, there 

were 120 successful staff donors who 

donated their blood to the Yangon National 

Blood Bank. As the event unfolded at 

the National Blood Bank, many passers- 

by stepped forward and expressed their 

interest in being part of the event and 

donating their blood. Many joined together 

to share the joy of giving at the Third 

Blood Donation Drive. To better cater to 


Good Practice 

Development 

Job creation 

The Bank has been expanding rapidly. 

In just over three years of operation, the 

Bank has a 65-branch network across the 

country as of March 2014. Many jobs are 

created nationwide as a result – from 

entry to managerial level – and the number 

of employees has risen tremendously, 

from 1,700 in 2012 to 2,600 in 2013. 

ments for the under-privileged patients 

at the Cardiology Ward. Costly surgeries 

and operations for more than 50 patients 

have been carried out with the support 

of Ayeyarwady Foundation since the 

opening of the new Cardiology Ward. 

Caring beyond the healthcare and 

education sectors 

Many internal conflicts in the country 

pose threats to the many who have lost 

their homes and loved ones in the midst 

of these conflicts. One such situation 

is the conflict in Rakhine State, which 

has killed many and left many homeless. 

AYA Bank has stepped forward and 

provided funds to help them rebuild 

their homes and their lives. Similarly, 

AYA Bank is also reaching out to other 

conflict-affected areas, such as Kachin 

State. 

Additionally, AYA Bank is also supporting 

those who are affected by natural 

disasters such as floods and fires. 

AYA Bank is becoming 

environmentally-friendly 

We at AYA Bank feel that it is not enough 

to just contribute to the education and 

healthcare sectors. We are also planning 

to become more environmentally-friendly. 

Apart from using energy-saving lights and 

reducing paper usage by relying more 

on electronic communication, we feel 

that we need to do more. Our planned 

initiatives include setting up more environmentally-friendly 

branches, which will 

also encourage our customers to become 

part of the initiative. The CSR team of the 

Bank is currently in negotiations with the 

respective City Development Councils 

about waste-management initiatives. 

“aYa BanK IS InvaLuaBLe tO uS” 

the need for blood across the country, 

AYA Bank plans to not only hold and 

organize such donation drives in Yangon, 

but also in other regions where blood 

banks are available. 

AYA Bank spoke to Dr. Thida Aung (in charge of the National Blood Center) on 

AYA Bank’s Blood Donation activities: 

“The National Blood Bank provides between 40,000 – 45,000 units of blood every 

year, with about 83.5 percent coming from donors. For cases where the patients 

require a blood type that is not available immediately, the blood bank keeps a list 

of previous donors with their respective blood types and source for donors. 

AYA Bank has actively carried out blood donation drives, and this is invaluable to 

us – their activities not only help to provide blood to those who are in need, but 

their enthusiasm also acts as a source of motivation to the others. 

I’d like to sincerely request to all those who are gifted with good health to help 

– in any way possible – those who are less fortunate. I also hope that AYA Bank 

continues such activities in the future.” 

Daw Thida Aung, M.B.B.S, M.Med.Sc, PhD Patho. Associate Professor, National Blood Center, Yangon 


159

DeutSCHe POSt DHL 

BuILDInG BrIDGeS tO 

a BrIGHter Future 

By Ralf Dürrwang and Christoph Selig, Deutsche Post DHL 

Deutsche Post DHL has been partnering with SOS Children’s Villages since 2011 in an 

initiative to help disadvantaged young people bridge the gap to the world of employment. 

In Brazil, one of the original four pilot countries, the program has flourished by employing 

a unique approach in which local DHL employees from all levels volunteer their time in 

hands-on workshops to tutor and mentor youth from the favelas. This not only provides 

inspiration and role models for the kids, but is also a valuable and eye-opening experience 

for the employees. The initiative has been so successful that it has spread to 14 countries, 

with another 10 to be added during 2014, and more on the horizon. 


Good Practice 

Development 

Ariel, 15, nervously tells the group of her 

dreams of one day becoming a biologist. 

She is one of two dozen young people 

gathered in the DHL meeting room in 

São Paulo, all of whom come from disadvantaged 

or broken families in the 

surrounding favelas, or slums. Anyone 

who grows up on the periphery of São 

Paulo tends to learn early in life that 

dreams are quickly shattered. Two-thirds 

of all children in the favelas quit school 

before they graduate, often because the 

pressure to support the family is high. 

So, too, is the probability that the lack 

of a high school diploma will lead to a 

vicious cycle of unemployment, violence, 

and criminality. 

After moving from a broken home to the 

SOS Children’s Village of Rio Bonito and 

joining the program it runs in partnership 

with DHL’s GoTeach initiative, Ariel 

has gained the courage to dream about 

a promising future. Thanks to the DHL 

employees who volunteer their time to 

teach and mentor young people like Ariel, 

she has the spirit to defy the odds and 

is working hard to break free from the 

clutches of poverty and pursue her dreams. 

Partnership of hope 

Deutsche Post DHL entered into a partnership 

with SOS Children’s Villages 

in order to build bridges to the world 

of professional employment for young 

people like Ariel. Every young person in 

that room in São Paulo made the choice 

to be there each Saturday morning – just 

like the DHL employees who volunteer 

to mentor and teach these teens. 

Over a period of 12 weeks, the DHL volunteers 

help to prepare these young people 

for professional life. Career planning is 

on the agenda, along with an overview of 

DHL and its three business units, as well 

as such fundamentals as mathematics 

and Portuguese. These are people such as 

Cindy Haring, CEO of the Global Forwarding 

Division in Brazil, who has been on 

site every Saturday for the last three years 

to help these kids, teaching them life 

skills and being there to support them. 

This commitment is a reflection of her 

conviction that it takes more than just 

talk to make a difference – you have to 

take action and do something about it. 

Domingos Ramos is another example 

of the DHL volunteers spending their 

Saturday mornings here. He is familiar 

with the difficulties that the participants 

are facing – from personal 

experience. Like many other Brazilians, 

he came to São Paulo with his family 

in the 1960s as an economic refugee 

from the drought-stricken northeastern 

part of the country and has had to work 

hard to rise up out of poverty. He feels 

strongly that, through GoTeach, he can 

SOS CHILDren’S vILLaGeS 

make a difference in the lives of these 

young people, admonishing them to 

“Study and try as hard as you can! It’s 

up to you!” 

Maximizing impact 

At DHL, our corporate citizenship activities 

are designed for effective, longterm 

impact and are an integral part 

of our corporate strategy. Through our 

GoTeach program, we strive to achieve 

long-term improvements in educational 

opportunities and employability for 

young people worldwide. With GoHelp, 

we help advance disaster management 

practices at airports in disaster-prone 

regions. And, through GoGreen, we help 

to reduce CO 2 

levels and protect the 

environment. We also provide support 

to local environmental protection and 

community service projects initiated by 

our employees. 

Recently, we embarked on a process to 

streamline and redefine our corporate 

citizenship activities, to give them a more 

strategic framework, as well as to boost 

employee involvement. We rely on our 

employees and on partner organizations 

to be able to carry out these programs 

and maximize their impact. Our employees 

are the ones who dedicate their 

SOS Children‘s Villages is an independent, non-governmental, social development 

organization that provides family-based care for children and young people in 

133 countries and territories. It advocates for the concerns, rights, and needs of 

children, especially those without parental care. More than 82,000 children and 

young people live in about 550 SOS Children’s Villages and more than 600 youth 

facilities around the world. 

SOS Children’s Villages adheres to the principle that every child grows best in a 

family environment, with caring parents or caregivers, living together with their 

siblings, in a place they can call home. SOS Children’s Villages works with communities, 

local partners, and authorities to support disadvantaged families across 

the world, thus preventing family breakdown. 

For more information, please visit: www.sos-childrensvillages.org 


161


Goteach – ImPrOvInG 

eDuCatIOnaL 

OPPOrtunItY anD 

emPLOYaBILItY 

GoTeach reflects our commitment 

to improving educational 

opportunities for young people 

and preparing them for the working 

world. Our goal is to support 

children and young people from 

all socioeconomic backgrounds to 

develop their potential and access 

new opportunities for their career 

development. Working in close 

cooperation with our partners, SOS 

Children’s Villages and Teach For 

All, our employees volunteer their 

experience, knowledge, and time to 

provide young people with support 

and insights into the working world. 

Goteach BraZIL 

GoTeach Brazil was launched as 

a pilot project in São Paulo, Brazil, 

in 2011. More than 60 young 

people have “graduated” from the 

program so far – some of them 

even found their first job at DHL 

when the program ended. The others 

received assistance with their 

job search. Not one of the participants 

quit school. At the moment, 

the selection process for the fourth 

year has been completed and the 

program will get underway in 

May 2014. 

time, experience, and enthusiasm to 

actually implement the activities. And 

we always need to have an experienced 

partner in these activities – normally a 

specialized nongovernmental organization 

– because we are not the experts 

in specific social cases, they are. 

Our corporate citizenship activities also 

help create sustainable business success 

for our company. This is because we 

always make sure that, whatever we 

do in corporate citizenship, it involves 

a social case and a business case. This is 

more than just about charity and giving 

money – we try to leverage the assets 

we have as a company, including, first 

and foremost, our people. 

As part of our new approach, we will 

also start measuring our corporate citizenship 

activities this year in order to 

make them more transparent. The aim is 

to gauge the impact of all our corporate 

citizenship activities across the globe. 

Personal involvement 

From the start of our partnership with 

SOS Children’s Villages, we wanted to 

take a different approach than the typical 

corporate citizenship program by interacting 

directly with the beneficiaries of 

the scheme. This was something new for 

SOS Children’s Villages – at first, they 

were hesitant to give us direct access to 

these vulnerable young people. 

However, we were able to demonstrate 

to SOS Children’s Villages how the opportunity 

to interact directly with DHL 

volunteers, see their working environments, 

and learn from their different 

experiences would benefit the youth 

in the program. The example of Brazil 

demonstrates the beauty of this concept. 

We employ a workshop environment in 

which the young people, aged 15–20, 

meet with DHL employees from different 

job profiles, levels, and backgrounds 

at DHL sites, working together every 

Saturday morning for some 12 weeks 

on issues that will help them become 

more employable. They learn social skills 

such as appropriate behavior and dress 

in a company environment, as well as 

practical skills such as using computers 

and other office machinery, along with 

business Portuguese, and even basic 

math proficiency. 

But even more important than these 

skills – and what makes this program 

so powerful – is the direct interaction 

with the DHL people. Just based on their 

experiences, our employees are natural 

mentors when it comes to the process 

of entering professional life. They themselves 

have applied for jobs, they hire 

young people, and they are familiar 

with the systems of education and career 

development in their respective 

countries. Our people on the ground in 

Brazil are almost 100 percent Brazilian 

nationals, many of whom have managed 

to overcome the same challenges that 

these young people are now facing, and 

to build a career at DHL. 

Our people are authentic role models for 

these youth when it comes to employability 

in Brazil. As soon as they start sharing 

their experiences – of how they got 

there, who helped them, what mistakes 

they made, and what they learned – the 

kids in the room listen intently, because 

that is their most valuable learning experience. 

The young participants learn 

that they can break the cycle of poverty, 

get a full-time job that allows them to 

support their families, and one day be 

able to send their own kids to school, 

giving them the best possible chance at 

a better future. 

This is why it is vital to involve people 

from different levels in the company. 

We have learned that every employee 

at DHL – from top managers to middle 

management, to delivery drivers and 

warehouse technicians – has something 

valuable to contribute. 

This also provides a unique opportunity 

for our employees, as well, giving 

them the opportunity to expand their 

own horizons and improve their own 

social skills in the process. In Brazil, for 


Good Practice 

Development 

instance, there is normally very little 

contact between the social classes, and 

we are building a bridge across this social 

divide. Our people in Brazil tell us that 

this is very eye-opening for them. 

Taking root, spreading far and wide 

SOS Children’s Villages, one of the key 

partners of the DHL GoTeach program, 

is active in more than 130 countries and 

is almost as global as Deutsche Post DHL. 

When the partnership was launched 

in 2010, we started in four countries – 

Brazil, Madagascar, South Africa, and 

Vietnam – and developed a collaborative 

model, working on the issue of employability 

for young people aged 15–25. We 

then added Mexico, Kenya, and Ghana 

to the partnerships. 

Constantly looking to grow the program 

and increase its impact, we doubled 

the number of countries to 14 in 2013. 

More than 700 employees devoted more 

than 10,000 hours of their time to our 

partnership with SOS Children’s Villages. 

As a result, approximately 1,200 

young people in the 14 partner countries 

received support through 120 different 

activities. This rate of expansion was 

only possible because people from the 

business units have stepped in to launch 

these programs – we simply wouldn’t 

be able to run so many programs from 

headquarters. 

In 2014, after four years, we have a pretty 

good feel for this – what the levers and 

the dos and don’ts of the partnership 

are – and plan to add up to 10 more 

countries this year. In fact, we will encourage 

our employees in all countries 

where SOS Children’s Villages is active 

to think about starting a relationship on 

a national or local level. We will provide 

the concept and business model of the 

partnership, and encourage our people 

to join in and support the overall mission 

of the partnership, which is fostering 

employability of young people coming 

from disadvantaged backgrounds. 

How the local teams tackle the issue of 

employability in each country is left completely 

up to them, resulting in a huge 

variety of different programs and activities. 

But they are consistently tailored to the 

needs of the youth and the opportunities 

available to them in the individual 

countries, and are designed to involve 

as many DHL people as possible from 

all levels. They also all address the same 

key issues: soft skills, wider job-profile 

orientation, and first-hand experience 

in a professional working environment. 

We are very proud about how this has 

taken root and is growing, as well as 

of the commitment shown by our employees 

in Brazil and in so many other 

countries. We hope to see many more 

follow their lead in future. 

COrPOrate 

CItIZenSHIP at 


For us, “Living Responsibility” 

means assuming an active role 

in society. It means putting our 

strengths and core competencies 

to work – not only to further our 

own business success as a mail 

and logistics services group, but to 

address the social challenges we 

face around the world today. 

Our corporate citizenship activities 

are designed for effective, longterm 

impact, and are an integral 

part of our corporate responsibility 

strategy. Through our GoTeach 

program, we help achieve longterm 

improvements in educational 

opportunity and employability 

for young people worldwide. With 

GoHelp, we help advance disaster 

management practices at airports 

in disaster-prone regions. We also 

provide support to local environmental 

protection and community 

service projects initiated by our 

employees. 


Living Responsibility: 

www.dpdhl.com/responsibility 


163

neStLé 

WOmen’S emPOWerment at 

neStLé 

By Bineta Mbacke, Nestlé 

In May 2013, Nestlé signed up to the Women’s Empowerment Principles: a partnership 

initiative between UN Women and the UN Global Compact comprising a set of seven steps 

that business can take to advance gender equality and empower women. 

These Principles will serve as a guide for 

actions we can take to empower women 

to participate fully in economic life across 

all sectors and throughout all levels of 

economic activity, from the boardroom, 

to the workplace, and across the supply 

chain to the community. 

first commodity-specific initiative to 

strengthen our support for women in 

the supply chain. It was launched last 

year to focus on gender issues, increase 

the number of women farmers supplying 

to our company, and boost agricultural 

practices. The action plan is active in Côte 

d’Ivoire and will be extended to Ghana, 

Indonesia, and Ecuador. It will be updated 

later this year after the Fair Labor 

Association publishes its assessment on 

our cocoa supply chain in Côte d’Ivoire. 

“Gender equality and women’s empowerment 

are very important,” says Paul 

Bulcke, Nestlé’s Chief Executive Officer. 

“We address this because it makes business-sense 

and we are determined to 

strengthen our business-related activities 

and programs to promote gender equality, 

capacity-building, and education for 

women and girls.” 

Supporting women 

In the marketplace, Nestlé has been able 

to provide 600,000 women with fundamental 

business and entrepreneurial 

skills in Asia, Africa, and the Americas. 

In rural communities, Nestlé has empowered 

more than 130,000 women 

with technical assistance and best practices 

in dairy farming and food safety by 

providing cocoa and coffee farmers with 

high-yield and disease-resistant plantlets. 

As part of the Nestlé Cocoa Plan, the 

“Nestlé Action Plan on Women in the 

Cocoa Supply Chain” is the company’s 


Good Practice 

Development 

Left: agatha vanie is clearly satisfied with 

the way these plantlets are growing. 

Centre: Dona Penha, 74, works selling 

products door-to-door through the nestlé 

até você programme in São Paulo, Brazil. 

Right: Kiran Zulfiqar took part in the nestlé 

dairy development programme in Pakistan 

and learned how to vaccinate animals. 

Training benefits 

In Vietnam, the Nescafé Plan was 

launched with the support of the Vietnamese 

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural 

Development. More than 37,000 coffee 

farmers – primarily women – were 

trained from 2012 to 2013. Nestlé aims 

to engage with about 20,000 Vietnamese 

coffee households by 2016. 

Tran Thi Mai, a coffee farmer in Vietnam, 

is already profiting from her Nescafé Plan 

training. The mother of two children has 

repaired the roof of her house, bought 

a new water pump, and installed a new 

electrically powered system to irrigate 

her coffee farm. 

Gender balance 

In Pakistan, the “Women Livestock Extension 

Workers” (WLEW) scheme is offering 

theoretical and practical lessons on basic 

animal health management. Livestock 

extension worker Naila Amanat had to 

put her master’s degree on hold and take 

over the family’s dairy farm after her father 

had an accident. She enrolled herself 

in the WLEW training and, in turn, has 

boosted productivity at her farm. Amanat 

is now head of the village representing 22 

other female livestock extension workers. 

“I have vowed to fulfill all my responsibilities 

and will not let gender be used as a 

tool for discrimination,” says Amanat. 

“Success and prosperity” 

In the marketplace, Nestlé helps women 

learn commercial and entrepreneurial 

skills. Our initiatives include Nestlé Professional’s 

“My Own Business,” which 

was launched in Central and West Africa 

to create opportunities for unemployed 

young people. It also provides operators 

with the tools and expertise to run their 

own enterprises. Alimatu Mohammed 

moved from the upper east region of 

Ghana to Accra to support her family 

after her parents died. She joined the 

scheme to become a micro operator and 

is now able to rent an apartment, fund 

her siblings’ education, and hopes to establish 

her own business venture one day. 

In Brazil, the “Nestlé até Você” initiative 

is providing women with business skills 

and nutritional training to sell Nestlé 

products door-to-door. Antonia Ilza Do 

Carmo Santos, a door-to-door vendor in 

São Pedro da Aldeia in Rio de Janeiro, 

started working as a reseller before Nestlé 

offered her an opportunity to own a micro 

distributor operation. Thanks to the 

scheme, she now owns two houses and 

ten cars to help distribute products in the 

area. “Success and prosperity came in the 

form of Nestlé and hard work,” she says. 

All these initiatives were integrated into 

our operations well before we signed up 

to the Women’s Empowerment Principles. 

We undertook them because 

they made solid business sense for the 

relevant Nestlé category business managers. 

Based on this initial assessment, 

we realize that we will need to share 

and learn more if we want to move our 

women’s agenda forward, which is why 

we are determined to strengthen our 

business-related activities and programs 

to promote gender equality, capacitybuilding, 

and education for women along 

our value chain. 


165

SaYGa 

a PurPOSe BeYOnD PrOFIt 

By Shimaa Abdelfadeel, Sayga 

Since its founding in 1996, Sayga has fundamentally changed the landscape of the milling 

and baking industry in Sudan. It has transformed a sector that relied on hand-ground, lowquality 

wheat imported in limited quantities into a revolutionized arena led by a responsible 

business committed to creating shared value for all its stakeholders. Along with producing 

healthy, affordable, and accessible staple foods, this approach has resulted in an improved 

quality of life for industry workers and consumers, and solidified Sayga’s position as a leader 

in the baking industry. 

As a business, we appreciate that investments 

of time and resources are not only 

about improving the bottom line, but 

also improving the social, economic, 

and natural environments in which our 

business operates. Our Baking Industry 

Development initiative is built on 

improving local circumstances in food 

industry practice and aligns with the 

local community’s priorities and needs. 

Through it, we have initiated a number 

of ongoing programs directed at adding 

sustainable value to our society. 

Our popular Baking Development Center 

(BDC) is a modern facility based in Khartoum 

that offers free, certified classes 

year-round to baking professionals and 

the general public. Our courses are most 

popular with the local women from our 

target segment. They register for one of 

the five-day classes through our company 

call center, leading many of them 

to expand on the experience and become 

entrepreneurs. The curriculum also incorporates 

management classes for bakery 

owners, distribution agents, and partners. 

In 2013, Sayga Investment Company officially merged with DAL Agricultural 

Services Company, DAL Dairy Factory, and DAL Food Industries 

to form DAL Food. DAL Food is committed to providing affordable, 

high-quality staple food and drink products to local and regional markets. Armed 

with strategic clarity, operational effectiveness, and a tradition of excellence, we will 

strive to further develop our capabilities and continue to raise standards with the 

highest consideration for our consumers, our communities, and our environment. 

We believe our sustainability depends on realizing the right balance of all three. 

By engaging in responsible and sustainable business practices across our organization, 

we aim to enhance the livelihoods of people across our value chain with integrity 

and responsibility. Built on the strength of our capabilities, DAL Food aims to be 

a leading food business in the region. 

We forged partnerships with civil society 

organizations to facilitate vocational training 

for the socially, economically, and 

physically disadvantaged – including 

customized classes for the blind and hard 

of hearing – and donate half of all products 

from the classroom to local charities 

through our Food Sharing Programme. 

Eager to reach the largest number of 

people all across Sudan, the BDC instituted 

a traveling trainer center. The five 

customized mobile bakery schools are 

designed to reach communities in remote 

rural areas, so as to service the majority 

segment of the population that does 

not have access to our Khartoum-based 

classes. As with the BDC, they offer classes 

that empower households and bakers 

with new skills and nutritional education, 

as well as offer technical support 

and equipment distribution for bakeries. 

The mobile schools are vital in allowing 

us to reach communities all over Sudan 

and train the majority of our beneficiaries. 

To date, more than 160,000 bakers and 

community members have been trained 

by the resident center and the mobile 

bakery schools. 


Good Practice 

Development 

In 2012, the BDC signed on to a formal 

partnership with the United Nations 

Industrial Development Organization 

to provide trainings and technical assistance 

to improve income-generation 

opportunities among underprivileged 

groups in South Kordofan. Outside of 

the classroom, a technical service team 

provides bakeries access to otherwise 

unattainable equipment at a subsidized 

cost, with free related services. The BDC 

has been committed from its conception 

to building up the baking industry and 

broader society along with our business. 

Sayga’s engagement with bakeries also 

seeks to change harmful practices. We 

constantly educate stakeholders on the 

need for hygienic operations, which is 

stressed in our trainings, and we provide 

them with the tools to implement what 

they learn. 

The Green Bakery initiative was launched 

in direct response to the environmentally 

harmful, often dangerous and unhygienic 

conditions that were observed in bakeries 

across Sudan. Sayga intervened to shift 

the industry away from certain harmful 

practices: using wood-burning ovens, ice 

for chilling dough, and potassium bromide. 

In return, bakeries gained better 

productivity and temperature control, 

reduced their carbon footprint, and required 

less maintenance. By creating 

alternatives to harmful practices, coupled 

with education, the Green Bakery initiative 

has enabled stakeholders to upgrade 

the baking industry’s operations to be 

more safe, hygienic, and environmentally 

friendly. The initiative also helped 

address deforestation, which is a rapidly 

worsening and critical concern in Sudan. 

Through these activities and others, 

Sayga implements our ambitious Baking 

Industry Development initiative through 

three main channels: business support, 

technical support, and capacity-building. 

Our business support is directed toward 

Sudanese bakeries across the country 

and involves valuable services. We supply 

industrial baking equipment and 

work tools to bakeries, and cooperate 

with bakery owners to develop a working 

environment that is accommodating to 

modern equipment and techniques. Our 

staff also helps bakeries with feasibility 

studies and management consulting to 

develop their businesses. 

Central to all of our efforts is our technical 

service team, which builds relationships 

with our customers in order to 

offer the support they need and help 

shape the industry. They make daily field 

visits, offer advice, provide services, and 

otherwise work hard to consistently raise 

standards. Through our technical support 

activities, we improve baking processes 

by educating industry workers on how 

to use different products, on avoiding 

production problems, and methods to 

increasing production. These activities 

also encompass the free maintenance 

we provide for industrial baking equipment 

and the subsidized machinery 

we provide bakeries. This arrangement 

enables us to help modernize bakeries 

and improve their productivity. 

Capacity-building is the heart of our initiative 

and is focused on training baking 

industry workers as well as conducting 

management courses for bakery owners 

and our distribution agents. 

Our employees constantly develop new 

initiatives to improve the baking industry; 

whether it is hygiene-awareness 

campaigns or a national baking competition, 

the activities remain relevant and 

dynamic despite the difficult economic 

situation and business environment in 

Sudan. 

Recognized for its remarkable impact, 

the BDC was awarded the CSR Arabia 

Award in 2010 for Best Project, making 

Sayga the first Sudanese company to receive 

an international CSR award. Sayga 

also won the 2013 Social Investment 

Pioneer Award in the Shared Value category, 

recognizing the extensive work the 

company has done to develop Sudan’s 

baking industry through social investment. 

Sayga’s Baking Industry Development 

initiative has truly created shared 

value in the baking industry in ways 

that are good for business, good for the 

community, and good for development. 


167

SK 

HarneSSInG tHe POWer OF 

SOCIaL enterPrISe 

By the Social Enterprise Team, SK SUPEX Council 

Social enterprises are organizations that apply commercial strategies toward resolving societal 

issues with sustainable business models. This new group of change agents can provide a 

meaningful alternative to existing approaches for achieving inclusive growth and sustainable 

development. Social enterprise – with the appropriate support based on effective policies and 

cross-sectoral collaboration – can further contribute toward addressing many of the complex 

social issues that we face. 

Social enterprise has emerged as a key 

term in SK’s corporate sustainability 

practice. SK’s social enterprise initiatives 

are based on a holistic approach 

that aims to create a nourishing and 

encouraging ecosystem for amplifying 

the potential impact delivered by social 

enterprises. SK’s engagement with social 

enterprises consists of a balanced 

combination of intellectual knowledgebuilding 

and hands-on field experience 

to help improve the business practices 

of social entrepreneurs and to inspire 

future social innovators. 

Helping social enterprises grow to 

the next level 

SK supports and incubates social enterprises 

in such ways as to unlock their 

unrealized potential. Happynarae, for 

example, is one of 16 social enterprises in 

which SK has made a direct investment. 

Transformed into a social enterprise from 

a for-profit MRO business with an annual 

turnover of $150 million, Happynarae is 

one of the largest social enterprises in the 

world. Happynarae currently hires more 

than 10 percent of its employees from the 

underprivileged, such as senior citizens, 

North Korean defectors, and low-income 

families. Moreover, as it is implementing 

structured support programs designed 

to enhance the capabilities of social 

enterprise suppliers, Happynarae is now 

being recognized as a “social enterprise 

helping other social enterprises.” 

SK recognizes the importance of building 

a strong pipeline for talents with 

passion and new ideas for social innovation. 

SK is now working with a top 

university in Korea, the Korea Advanced 

Institute of Science and Technology, 

in offering a full-degree MBA program 

focusing on social entrepreneurship. All 

students admitted to the program are 

eligible for full-tuition support on one 

condition: They must launch a social 

enterprise or find a job in the social 

enterprise sector upon graduation. In 

addition to rigorous academic training 

in the areas of management skills 

and business startups, the curriculum 

features special lectures and mentoring 

programs by experts from various 

disciplines that are designed to equip 

students with professional capabilities 

as well as social consciousness. Students 

are also required to work on multiple 

field projects to engage closely with local 

communities. SK expects this social 

enterprise MBA program to contribute 

toward shaping and producing a new 

breed of leaders with empathy and compassion 

for social progress. 

Catalyzing a cross-sectoral collaboration 

for social entrepreneurship 

SK believes in the importance of collaboration 

across different sectors – public 

and private, industry and academia, 

among others. Integrating the best capabilities 

of different sectors is essential 

to create an enabling environment for 

social enterprises to flourish and attract 

new, innovative ideas while encouraging 

investments for positive social change. 

Recently, SK supported a research project 

conducted through the combined efforts 

of industry, government, and academia. 

Recognizing an imminent need for a comprehensive 

policy framework, the Schwab 

Foundation, Harvard University, and SK 

teamed up to survey policy examples on 

nurturing social entrepreneurship around 

the world. The results of this research were 

published as a report, The Policy Guide 

to Scaling Social Innovation. The report 

highlights various models of social innovation 

that tackle pervasive challenges 

in our society, and it demonstrates policy 

examples that help social enterprises to 

produce greater social impacts. 


Good Practice 

Development 

Social entrepreneurship mBa Students 

at KaISt are in discussion 

on potential business models. 

Organizing and fostering social 

entrepreneurship on a global scale 

Actors in a social enterprise ecosystem 

have different skill sets aimed at resolving 

targeted social issues. The sky is 

the limit if we can have a platform for 

organizing the global best practices of 

social entrepreneurship while inviting 

supporters such as corporations, investors, 

governments, and NGOs to provide 

resources and take collective action to 

create positive social impacts. 

Since 2011, SK has been working with 

the UN Global Compact and its partners 

to establish an online platform that facilitates 

cross-sectoral collaborations to 

organize ideas for social innovation under 

the framework of the UN’s post-2015 development 

goals. As a system for catalyzing 

cross-sectoral learnings, testing and 

experimenting new ideas, and creating 

significant social impacts at both the local 

and global levels, the Social Enterprise 

Action Hub is designed to inspire, connect, 

and enable participants to share and collaborate. 

The Hub showcases innovative 

business models that can have an impact; 

inspires stakeholders to engage in collaborative 

action to create and advance 

market-based responses to sustainability 

challenges; and catalyzes partnerships 

for projects that create mutual benefits 

for supporters and beneficiaries. 

During the UN Global Compact Leaders 

Summit 2013, the beta version of 

the Social Enterprise Action Hub was 

launched. As of December 2013, there 

were 34 projects from 57 companies and 

organizations posted on the Hub. The 

Social Enterprise Action Hub was also 

presented in a series of Global Compact 

Local Network meetings as a key 

outcome of the 2013 Leaders Summit. 

At the local level, regional Collaboration 

Labs are being organized to implement 

online collaborations that are committed 

to the Social Enterprise Action Hub and 

being turned into actionable initiatives. 

Participants are provided with opportunities 

to learn more about innovations 

that can address sustainability challenges 

and given access to resources to create 

achievements on a bigger scale. During 

the India Collaboration Lab meeting 

held in 2013, businesses and social entrepreneurs 

were paired to articulate 

better approaches on water and sanitation 

issues. This resulted in partnerships 

between social enterprises and corporations 

that will deploy new solutions for 

water transportation and purification in 

the most water-stressed regions in India. 

Harnessing the power of 

change agents 

Sustainable development can be achieved 

if there are combined and concerted efforts 

from different sectors that share 

a common goal of supporting social 

entrepreneurs for positive social progress. 

SK is committed to harnessing the power 

of these change agents and building an 

ecosystem with capabilities that can 

provide opportunities for innovative 

social entrepreneurs to help turn their 

ideas into solutions. 


169

BraDeSCO 

BraDeSCO InveStS In 

mOBILItY tHrOuGH ItS 

DIGItaL CHanneLS 

As the first company to launch mobile banking in Brazil, the 

Bank strengthens its strategy of expanding mobility services. 

By Rúbia Piancastelli 

Today, Brazil has the fourth largest 

number of mobile phone users in the 

world. But back in 1999, when Brazil 

did not yet have 240 million mobile 

phones in use, Bradesco had already 

launched the first national mobile banking 

service. In 2008, when smartphones 

started to become more popular, the 

number of customers using mobile 

banking services grew rapidly, contributing 

to the sustainability of the 

business and ensuring convenience 

and safety for users. 

The most recent investment was to offer 

free mobile phone access to bank 

accounts. Due to partnerships with telecommunication 

companies, clients 

using banking applications and the 

mobile website have not had to pay 

for data traffic since March 2014. This 

significantly increased the number of 

people who were willing to use the 

service, with the freedom to choose 

and execute their financial transactions 

through accessible technology 

and transparent information. 

It goes even further: The free access, combined 

with innovation, has fostered the 

development of local economies, as customers 

and entrepreneurs can now benefit 

from digital channels to meet different 

demands that support business growth. 

The digital channels available are Internet 

Banking, Bradesco Celular, Selfservice, 

and Fone Fácil. The operations 

carried out independently by clients total 

88 percent of all monthly transactions. 

By offering people greater mobility to 

access their accounts and make transactions, 

the Bank combines customer 

satisfaction and sustainability with the 

practicality of operations and support 

for the development of local economies. 

A world on your phone 

Bradesco offers 22 iPhone apps, 16 apps 

for iPad, 13 for Android, and other apps 

for Windows Phone and BlackBerry. 

Other types of equipment are also capable 

of accessing the services via browsers, 

increasing the number of clients served 

by Bradesco Celular. 

Bradesco Celular allows customers to 

easily perform 80 percent of the operations 

offered by the Bank. Network access 

numbers also do not stop growing, as 


Good Practice 

Financial markets 

GrOWtH OF tHe 

DIGItaL CHanneLS 

Bradesco Celular: a daily transaction 

average of R$ 3.1 million, 

101 % increase on 2012. 

Internet Banking: a daily transaction 

average of R$ 12.7 million, 

17 % over the previous year. 

well as the volume of transactions. In 

2013, the service totaled 868 million 

transactions – 128 percent more than 

in the previous year – and financial 

volume was R$ 5.5 billion, equivalent 

to an increase of 250 percent over 2012. 

Good for the customer, good for the Bank. 

In addition to regular banking operations, 

applications were designed to offer 

services of interest that focus on the 

needs of each client. For example, those 

who invest in shares can monitor prices, 

indexes, and currencies via Bradesco 

Trading. College students, on the other 

hand, can check and use their accounts 

in addition to viewing college grades and 

managing absences online. 

the security of transactions is guaranteed 

by the integration of a user security key 

and the usability offered by the barcode 

reader when dealing with invoices. 

In addition to the online option, there is 

also an offline mode option using only 

SMS. Clients only need to register free-ofcharge 

to gain access to various services, 

of which the most important are: 

• paying payment slips through ADD 

(authorized direct debit) 

• paying utility bills (water, electricity, 

telephone, and others) 

• checking balances and latest transactions 

in bank account 

• recharging mobile phones (Claro, Oi, 

TIM, and Vivo) 

• receiving messages related to debit 

card purchases and other transactions 

(InfoCelular) 

• monitoring transfers (between Bradesco 

and other banks). 

Self-service terminals continue to be the 

easiest and most-efficient way to withdraw 

money, while bank branches are 

the place for customers and managers 

to keep in touch and discuss their issues. 

Contact Center services are indispensable 

for queries, guidelines, and more complex 

banking operations that cannot be 

carried out in other channels. With this 

variety, Bradesco intends to continue to 

evolve and offer – in addition to comfort 

and safety – better products and services 

that are inclusive and ensure fast access. 

Partnerships that generate benefits 

In 2013, in partnership with the telecommunications 

company Claro, Bradesco 

launched an “m-payment” product that 

enables customers to carry out purchases, 

transfers, and withdrawals directly 

through their phones: Meu Dinheiro 

Claro. Joining the service is free and 

there are no charges for data usage – a 

great deal for both consumers and sellers. 

In the Conta Bônus Celular program, 

on the other hand, clients have access 

to various financial services and receive 

the entire amount paid for the service as 

a bonus on their prepaid cell phone or 

control plan with the companies Claro, 

Oi, and Vivo, and on Claro’s postpaid 

plans. 

We expect the number of clients accessing 

Bradesco via mobile phone to reach 

6 million in 2014. The objective is linked 

to Bradesco’s philosophy of promoting 

banking inclusion and contributing toward 

people’s ability to gain access to 

the financial and credit systems. 

Applications, including game-related 

apps, cultural information, and access 

to the Bank’s reports, reached the 

milestone of 8 million downloads. This 

whole scenario shows the huge success 

of digital channels, which have gone 

from an alternative to a preferred means 

of communication and are being used 

more frequently by Bradesco’s clients, 

not only to carry out transactions but 

also to enhance their knowledge. 

More variety with quality 

Fundamental to the mobility promoted by 

the Bank, SMS services and the network 

with more than 70,000 service points in 

Brazil have improved in terms of variety 

and quality. As a crucial part of the service, 

BraDeSCO CeLuLar In 2013 

Active clients 

3.0 million 

Transactions 

868 million 

Loans 

R$ 195.9 million 

Payments 

R$ 1.2 billion 

Transfers 

R$ 2.3 billion 

Home Broker 

R$ 852.6 million 

Card statement consultations 

accessed 18 million times 


171

TRENDS IN CSR 

When CSR discussions started in the late 1960s, 

early 1970s ethical and moral arguments were 

the drivers. Since then CSR activities have 

become more holistic and professional. 

This becomes a principle-based approach in 

which business seeks to identify smarter 

business models, products, and services. 

172 


Agenda 

Trends in CSR 


“ 

The term is a brilliant one; it means something, 

but not always the same thing to everybody. To some 

it conveys the idea of legal responsibility or liability; 

to others, it means socially responsible behavior in an 

ethical sense; to still others, the meaning transmitted 

is that of ‘responsible for,’ in a causal mode; many 

” 

simply equate it with a charitable contribution. 

Dow Votaw, 1973 

174 


Agenda 

Trends in CSR 

BETWEEN VOLUNTARY 

AND MANDATORY CSR 

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become firmly established in the business 

lexicon. Although some conversation partners still need to be reminded of what CSR 

really is and why it is important, most of them understand its value by now. Indeed, 

this leads to many different expectations for CSR, such that discussions around it 

today are shifting toward putting limits on the term and creating rules around it. 

Where does CSR begin? Where does it end? 

By Dr. Elmer Lenzen 

Any discussion of the ethics and morality of day-to-day business 

– environmental protection, human rights, or labor 

laws – has to include the concepts of CSR and sustainability. 

Understandably, this tends to lead to exaggerations: Only recently, 

Robert Engelman rightly complained of inflationary use of the 

sustainability concept, calling it “sustainababble.” Well-known 

Harvard professor Michael Porter has also criticized how CSR 

has been thrown around as a term, since everyone has a different 

understanding of what it means. Engelman and Porter both 

have a point: We are experiencing the inflationary use of terms 

such as “sustainability” and “CSR” in the most varied – and 

sometimes ridiculous – contexts. But is this really a weakness? 

When the “CSR movement” began – if we may label it 

so – this lack of precision was actually its greatest strength: 

Those pronouncing their expectations ranged from critical 

stakeholders, who viewed it as a lever to implement quasi 

legal conditions, to companies that simply wanted to rebrand 

their philanthropic commitments without giving the slightest 

thought to changing the management approach associated 

with them. CSR has thus become a flexible surface on which 

to project any number of interests. When put into practice, 

this can lead to arbitrariness – the aforementioned sustainababble 

– but it can also be a route to positive engagement 

with the subject. 

12. century 

Concept of the “Honorable Merchant” 

emerges in Venice. 


Innovative models 

For a long time, the main question has been: What is CSR really? 

I would like to highlight three definitions that remain just as 

valid today. One of these is Archie Carroll’s four-level pyramid, 

which was the first to differentiate corporate responsibility 

into four dimensions, opening the door for systematization 

and structure. Carroll distinguished between four areas of 

responsibility: economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic. 

The second substantial impetus for CSR comes from John 

Elkington’s “triple bottom line,” which puts the same emphasis 

on environmental and social responsibility goals as 

pure economic success and employs the Computable General 

Equilibrium model popular among economists. All three pillars 

are meant to be weighted equally. Prioritizing one area 

comes at the expense of the others: In the long term, pursuing 

the lopsided maximization of profit while disregarding 

environmental and labor standards will lead to failure. We 

see evidence of this in the media every day. 

The third definition comes from Michael Porter, one of the 

most influential economists of our time; some even consider 

his “creating shared value” (CSV) approach to be a better label 

than CSR. Porter’s definitive contribution is the proof that the 

competitiveness of a corporation depends on its surroundings, 

and vice versa. “The fact is that no company can survive in a 

failing society,” says CSV expert and Nestlé consultant Marc 

Pfitzer. “If nothing else, a company’s selfish will to survive 

suggests that the enterprise will look after its environment.” 

How mature is your CSR? 

It is rarely necessary anymore to justify CSR for its own sake. 

Nowadays, the more important question is what CSR activities 

should look like. Daniel Zirnig has written that “management 

is less concerned today with whether CSR activities should 

take place than with how they should be carried out.” This 

begs the question of how we are to distinguish among the 

discernibly different levels of activities. 

Andreas Schneider of Austria has made a well-considered 

contribution to this field with his “maturity model,” which 

outlines a series of incremental levels from CSR 0.0 to CSR 3.0 

with varying amounts of corporate responsibility. Schneider’s 

model is a sensible way to differentiate the countless CSR 

activities, which range from modest to phenomenal. 

The basic assumption is that the higher the quality and greater 

the extent of a company’s integration of CSR, the greater its 

benefit for the society, the environment, and the company 

itself. At the end of the day, then, this is about creating value 

for everyone, where “value” means more than just revenue, 

and “everyone” means more than just direct stakeholders. 

CSR is not the fine art of writing checks but of creating value. 

What are the limits of CSR? 

Much more interesting than evaluating CSR activities is the 

question of how far they go: What needs to happen for an 

activity to be upgraded to a higher level? And, by implication, 

what kind of CSR mistakes would trigger a downgrade? The 

first threshold is easy: The moment an accidental campaign 

becomes a concept or a plan that is being consciously driven and 

managed, we are talking about corporate social responsibility. 

This supports the idea that corporate responsibility is always 

more than what is stipulated under the law. The boundary is 

clearly recognizable: It consists of voluntarily going beyond 

legal compliance. Most organizations – ISO 26000, the UN 

Global Compact, and the EU Commission, just to name a few 

– consider the decision to voluntarily go beyond the limits of 

what is necessary to be an essential feature of CSR. As Schneider 

says, “CSR is thus at the discretion of the entrepreneur or the 

corporation rather than the legislature, which would make a 

legal CSR requirement paradoxical.” 

Yet it is exactly these sorts of requirements that we are now 

seeing in many areas. They come in various guises, whether 

it be an EU reporting obligation or a 2 percent tax in India. 

The measures may be correct and well-founded, but they are 

1713 

Hans Carl von Carlowitz 

coins the concept of sustainability 

using the example of forest 

management. 

1776 

Adam Smith 

mentions corporate 

responsibility in 

The Wealth of Nations. 

176 


Agenda 

Trends in CSR 

actually bringing us up against the limits of CSR. More specifically, 

when actions cease to be voluntary and are instead 

required – the moment we go from “beyond legal compliance” 

to “within legal compliance” – we reach the end of CSR and 

the beginning of compliance. 

We can argue over the details of this distinction. At a conference 

in India not long ago, for example, Michael Porter stressed that 

voluntarism was “the only way to create impact. Meeting the 

needs and meeting those needs at a profit is crucial.” It is certainly 

true that legal obligations do not encourage creative and 

individual speculation beyond these boundaries. On the other 

hand, a legal regulation can be a sensible bottom line, above 

which CSR can be reinvented and reassessed. Forcing companies 

in India to spend 2 percent on CSR through legislation is not CSR. 

But if more than 2 percent is spent, however, CSR begins anew. 

CSR 0.0 and 1.0 – The roots of engagement 

Let us first look at Schneider’s maturity model to shed some 

light on the lower levels of CSR. CSR 0.0 describes the simplest 

level. Social activities are performed, but these are neither 

systematic, planned, nor otherwise premeditated. The laws 

are followed. Apart from that, the focus is on economic success. 

When social engagement occurs, if at all, it is impulsive 

and coincidental. It may consist of donations after a natural 

catastrophe or in response to requests from an association. 

We can also refer to CSR 0.0 as “cosmetic CSR.” 

1950s 

Stakeholder Theory is developed, 

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) 

appears in discussions. 

1972 

Club of Rome: “Limits of Growth” rocks the predominant belief 

in eternal growth. 

United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in 

Stockholm is the first UN event on environmental issues. 


emphasis on quality. The aim of CSR 2.0 is to deal with the 

company as a whole. Tools for this purpose frequently draw 

on Elkington’s triple bottom line and the equilibrium models 

associated with it. Schneider calls CSR 2.0 “active, reflective, 

and strategic CSR … If CSR is implanted in the ‘DNA’ of a 

company in this way, the company gains social relevance and 

acceptance, stability, and effectiveness. In short: It becomes 

more competitive.” 

If such activities are better planned, for example in the form of 

long-term contributions to the aforementioned association, this 

becomes CSR 1.0, which involves actions such as philanthropic 

engagement through donations, sponsorships, or corporate 

citizenship. Common to all of these activities is that they have 

nothing to do with the core business, nor do they have any 

effect upon it: CSR 1.0 is a “nice to have.” From an operational 

point of view, this is purely a cost factor; action comes from 

the ethical motivation to give something back to society. Often 

enough, this happens because the company has caused 

damage and now has a bad reputation it wishes to improve. 

Michael Porter talks about “responsive CSR,” which is more 

of a retrospective understanding of corporate responsibility. 

CSR 2.0 – Today’s best-in-class 

CSR 2.0 goes one step further because it relates to the core business 

and is part of the business case. CSR influences corporate 

strategy, business products and portfolios, and the question of 

how money is earned. It ranges from production processes to 

product responsibility and supply chains. CSR 2.0 is part of the 

brand promise and is made possible through the systematic 

planning and management of corporate responsibility. Other 

priorities include a willingness to engage in dialogue and an 

What separates CSR 2.0 from the lower levels is an underlying 

system of management that is complex and ambitious. As 

for what is involved, the specific structure of sustainability 

management always depends on the individual company, 

but some of the inevitable building blocks are stakeholder 

management, supply chain management, environmental 

protection, and worker protection, as well as compliance and 

sustainability reporting. 

So that no actor involved can make proprietary rules, and 

in order to avoid repetition, actors tend to create their own 

standards at the CSR 2.0 level and above. Such initiatives – be 

they industry-wide mergers or cross-sector partnerships – create 

quasi national self-regulation, or so-called soft laws. The 

most well-known example of this is the UN Global Compact, 

with its voluntary but binding commitment to follow the 

Ten Principles. 

At the same time, however, management and regulation 

procedures of this type lead to higher bureaucratic hurdles. 

There is a perception that every day brings more guidelines, 

surveys, audits, certificates, and assessments that those in 

charge of CSR must respond to. CSR management becomes a 

bureaucracy machine. Michael Porter gave the Guardian an 

apt quote on this: “In the CSR formulation, there’s a ‘check 

the box.’ You have to have a recycling program, you have 

to do carbon inventory, you have to save water, you have 

to save packaging. There’s a … generic set of sustainability 

[checkboxes] that everybody has to do. When companies are 

dealing with those, that’s not where the excitement comes. 

That’s not where they really ‘get it.’” 

1987 

Brundtland Report: 

Our common future forms 

a definition of sustainability 

valid until today. 

1992 

Rio Declaration on Environment and 

Development includes the “Agenda 21” – 

a multistakeholder approach toward 

sustainable development. 

2000 

The UN Global Compact 

and the 

Global Reporting Initiative 

are launched. 

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Trends in CSR 

CSR 3.0 – A controversial idea 

If CSR 1.0 is the past, and 2.0 is the present, then 3.0 is the 

future. CSR 3.0 describes one possible – and desirable – future: 

a sustainable change in the underlying conditions, a 

new understanding of economy, and value creation. It also 

represents a new understanding of social responsibility and 

participation. CSR 3.0 would require a redefinition and rethinking 

of the relationship of the state, the economic system, 

and civil society. 

More specifically, this means that when companies take 

on social responsibility, they will not only have obligations 

but also the right to carry them out. Instead of companies 

simply being subject to regulations, they will be creating the 

regulations themselves. In Schneider’s words, firms will be 

proactively framing policy: “CSR 3.0 is concerned with themes 

in society that influence business activities in a broader and 

indirect sense, such as human rights and education inside 

and outside the company.” 

The underlying idea of CSR 3.0 has academic heft: Instead of 

social development being the sole domain of politicians, it is 

steered by a group of actors who share responsibility. The dayto-day 

meaning of such an approach, however, is incredible 

fodder for conflict. If companies begin to have an influence 

on tasks of the state such as education policy, health policy, 

and immigration – even if this happens in tandem with other 

stakeholders – it is easy to imagine the kinds of debate this 

would set off. In sum, CSR 3.0 deals with subjects that are 

highly topical, complex, and often controversial. 

politically nor the financial means to overcome challenges – 

with multilateralism obviously in crisis, it is irresponsible to 

wait for global political agreements on climate change. 

Second, we need a sustainable change of course; anything else 

is self-destructive. Politics alone cannot solve the problem, nor 

can money. The solution lies in globally conceived, locally 

networked CSR, where companies create forward-looking, 

binding rules for economic activity through candid dialogues 

with their stakeholders, with each stakeholder allocated specific 

tasks for the implementation of these rules and the mandate 

to carry them out. 

They should do this because Marc Pfitzer is right: Over the 

long term, no company can focus on reaping profits in a 

failed society. Corporate responsibility is the sensible thing 

to do for survival. 

The subjects at stake are: climate protection and energy-policy 

transformation; food security and consumer policy; species 

conservation; environmental protection in all its forms; demographic 

change; and the Millennium Development Goals. 

The limited resources and biodiversity of this planet leave us 

no time for delay: We need a debate on CSR 3.0. Now. 

Great challenges call for great efforts 

The political explosiveness of a debate over changes in society 

and new stewardship of social issues is obvious. Here is why 

this discussion needs to happen. 

First, the 19th-century model of the nation-state as enforcer 

of societal governance has neither the power to assert itself 


is founder of macondo publishing GmbH, 

publishing house of the 

Global Compact Yearbooks and the 

CSR Manager Platform. 

2002 

The World Summit for Sustainable 

Development in Johannesburg 

stresses the role of business in solving 

global challenges. 

2009 

ISO 26000 

CSR Guidance Document 

2012 

Rio+20 conference: 

Business sector for the first time is 

willing to make more concessions 

than politicians. 


GLOBAL 

TRENDS TOWARD 

MANDATORY CSR 

Disclosure efforts by governments around the world 

Argentina: Since 2008 local and international 

companies in Buenos Aires with 

more than 300 employees are required 

to present an annual sustainability report. 

Australia introduced ethical disclosure 

requirements in 2010 under the Financial 

Services Reform Act. 

Belgium: In 2006 the Federal Action Plan 

for CSR was developed to promote CSR in 

Belgium and encourage companies to integrate 

it into their management structures. 

Canada: The government of Canada has 

adopted a national position that encourages 

Canadian corporations to practice CSR. 

China: An influential directive from 2008 

encourages state-owned enterprises to 

comply with sound CSR practices. 

In Denmark, beginning in 2010, the 1,100 

largest companies in the country began 

reporting on their CSR efforts. 

Ecuador: Mining companies are to record 

consumption of materials and resources 

and to present an annual environmental 

audit. 

Finland: The government introduced a 

mandatory reporting requirement for 

state-owned companies in 2011. 

France: Since 2002 all listed companies 

have had to divulge information about 

social and environmental conditions in 

their annual reports. 

In India under Companies Act, 2013, any 

company with a net worth of Rs 500 crore 

(ca. $ 80 million) or more must spend 

2 percent of their net profits on CSR activities. 

The Indonesian government has signed 

a law that requires listed companies to 

report on their activities in society and 

for the environment. 

Ireland: State-owned banks have to publish 

CSR reports at least biannually. 

Malaysia: Listed companies are required 

to publish CSR information on a “comply 

or explain” basis. 

Netherlands: Listed companies are required 

to publish annual environmental 

reports. 

Since 2013 Norwegian law requires large 

companies to disclose information on how 

they are integrating social responsibility 

into their business strategies. 

Saudi Arabia: Companies are required to 

pay amounts equal to 2.5 percent of their 

income to the revenue department, which 

then distributes the amount to the needy. 

Singapore: The Code on Corporate Governance 

regulates corporate governance 

disclosures. 

180 


Agenda 

Trends in CSR 

South Africa: The Code of Corporate 

Governance (King III) requires integrated 

sustainability reporting and third-party 

assurance from all South African companies 

as a listing requirement for the 

Johannesburg Stock Exchange. 

Spain: Government-sponsored companies 

must publish corporate governance and 

CSR reports. 

Sweden: All state-owned companies must 

report using GRI G3 standards. 

Taiwan: Financial market regulators require 

all public and listed companies to 

disclose their CSR performance. 

United Kingdom : The Financial Reporting 

Council is finalizing rules for corporate 

disclosures on environmental, social, and 

diversity issues. The new guidelines are 

intended to replace the existing “business 

review” section of annual reports. 

In the United States, the EPA Mandatory 

Reporting of Greenhouse Gases requires 

large emitters of greenhouse gases to 

report GHG data. 

Sources: 

Harvard University Initiative for 

Responsible Investment; 

Abhinav Prakash / Designing Corporate 

Citizenship Initiative; 

Jeannet Lingan / Stakeholder Forum, 

Wikipedia 


INDIA’S CSR STORY 

The Indian Companies Bill is a remarkable piece of legislation. With one 

stroke, it has mandated CSR spending across a multitude of companies. 

It is the result of months of discussions with NGOs, companies, politicians, 

and bureaucrats, and it is estimated that $3 billion in capital will be 

generated annually through the money spent by 16,000 companies on CSR 

(2 % of net profits). 

By Dr. Utkarsh Majmudar and Namrata Rana 

This has happened amidst energetic debate in the Western 

world arguing against the need for legislating CSR. But India 

operates in a unique context. Our health, water, sanitation, 

illiteracy, and poverty problems are immense. Scalable, highimpact, 

innovative solutions – driven in part by legislation, 

enterprise, and personal action – are the only way out. 

The task now is to convert the opportunity that this legislation 

provides into tangible outcomes that not only comply with the 

law but also highlight the larger vision of the organizations 

they impact. The unique culture, skills, and intrinsic abilities 

of Indian companies to innovate can establish new ways 

to support society and build their brands. CSR solutions can 

take the form of collective funds for greater impact, financial 

innovation, and new social impact models. 

Targeted CSR spends 

A study of the Global Reporting Initiative on Indian companies 

reveals CSR investments in a multitude of areas. However, the 

new bill gives legitimacy only to select areas where these funds 

need to be invested. Some of the areas covered include poverty, 

education, gender equality, health, and environmental sustainability. 

Under the new rules, companies would need to clearly 

distinguish those activities that are undertaken specifically in 

pursuit of the normal course of business and those that are 

done incrementally as part of their CSR initiatives. Expenses 

incurred during the normal course of business cannot be 

classified as CSR expenses – even though the expenditure is 

for CSR-related purposes. 

Pooling together resources to reach scale 

Before the new rules were mandated, an important question 

arose: Rather than simple charity, can corporate India collectively 

fund efforts to solve common problems? For example, 

large food and drink companies can together target the waste 

that their product packaging generates. Automotive companies 

can pool resources to address road deaths and unsafe driving. 

Steel companies, which are large consumers of water, can work 

with local communities to recharge underground wells and 

help provide safe water solutions. Together, these corporations 

can leverage the kind of scale and longevity needed to solve 

these deep-rooted problems. 

The rules have given legitimacy to the idea of pooling of resources, 

thereby enabling companies to enhance their spending 

capacity on bigger CSR projects. Companies belonging to the 

same group can set up a nonprofit trust and can join hands 

with other companies to undertake CSR projects jointly. 

182 


Agenda 

Trends in CSR 

Reporting and disclosure 

Financial innovation 

To ensure that the mandated money is spent well, innovative 

financial products such as social impact bonds are critical. 

Experimenting with such instruments will allow for formal 

relationships to be formed that are based on outcomes and 

follow stringent audit rules. Achievement of outcomes will 

ensure that the money is spent wisely and that social benefits 

are achieved. The broader impact will be to help in channeling 

financial resources toward areas that have social or environmental 

benefits. The creative use of funds will definitely help 

improve the lives of all people, not just those in proximity of 

a company’s plants, but also broader society. Using financial 

tools innovatively can potentially raise social levels dramatically. 

The realization that CSR projects can no longer be charitable 

contributions and that they need to be accountable for impact 

is slowly hitting home. It is worrying for many that they can 

have a significant impact on brand and corporate reputations. 

Our study of sustainability reports indicates that the quality of 

reporting leaves much to be desired. With information flowing 

from both internal as well as external sources (e.g., CSR 

agencies), ensuring high-quality reportage will be complex. 

This may lead to the growth of specialized agencies (e.g., CSR 

auditors) to ensure high-quality reporting and minimize the 

information asymmetry that currently exists – much like the 

American ecosystem, which has mushroomed a marketplace 

of organizations and agencies to support corporations’ efforts 

in CSR reporting, verification, etc. 

This is an exciting time for India and CSR. The future is uncertain, 

but there is also hope – that corporations will finally 

do more of the right things and tell more about it!. 

Scarcity of talent 

For many corporations, this strategic shift is difficult, and it 

is compounded by the scarcity of CSR talent to create scalable 

long-term strategies and implement them. Although several 

thousand jobs will be created because of this Bill, several 

CSR jobs at all levels lie vacant. The big questions in these 

nascent CSR departments include: What causes should be 

supported? How can efforts be scaled? How can these efforts 

be implemented without losing focus? 

Rise of the CSR agency 

With CSR expenditures expected to be large and with scarce 

trained resources, growing the CSR department will be a slow 

process at most companies initially. Many are predicting the 

rise of the CSR agency – an intermediary firm – which will 

serve as the go-between. They will take the funds and distribute 

them to NGOs, ensuring that efforts are consistent, accounted 

for, and scalable. The agency could also help companies with 

other aspects such as training, verification, impact assessment, 

and ongoing audits. 

Dr. Utkarsh Majmudar 

is a professional with 

experience encompassing 

academics and administration 

at top business schools 

in India (IIM Lucknow, 

IIM Udaipur and 

IIM Bangalore) and working 

with large corporations. 

His interest areas include 

corporate finance and CSR. 

Namrata Rana is a Director 

at Futurescape. She has a 

master’s in Sustainability 

from Cambridge and an MBA 

degree from IIM Ahmedabad. 

She has worked extensively in 

sustainability, CSR, livelihoods, 

healthcare, and mobility. 

She also conducts workshops on 

CSR and sustainability practices 

of businesses. 


SUSTAINABILITY 

STANDARDS FOR 

US CORPORATE 

10-K REPORTING 

Source: sasb.org 

The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) provides 

sustainability accounting standards for use by publicly listed 

corporations in the United States when disclosing material 

sustainability issues for the benefit of investors and the public. 

SASB standards are designed for disclosure in mandatory filings 

to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), such 

as the 10-K and 20-F forms. SASB is an independent non-profit 

organization and is accredited to set standards by the American 

National Standards Institute (ANSI). 

The need for SASB 

The US financial accounting system, which requires transparent 

disclosure of material issues to investors, plays a fundamental 

role in making its markets the most efficient, liquid, and resilient 

in the world. However, the construct for standardized 

financial reporting to investors was developed at a time when 

a company’s ability to create value was constrained largely by 

the ability to access financial capital. 

We live in a different world now, one that has greater uncertainty, 

a broader range of risks and opportunities, and 

significant resource constraints beyond access to capital. 

A new standardized language is needed to articulate the material 

non-financial risks and opportunities facing companies 

today. These non-financial risks and opportunities that affect 

corporations’ ability to create long-term value are characterized 

as “sustainability” issues. Sustainability issues vary by 

industry because they are closely aligned with business models, 

the way companies compete, their use of resources, and their 

impact on society. 

For this reason, SASB is immersed in understanding, interpreting, 

and measuring relevant sustainability issues at the 

industry level in order that they can be measured, managed, 

and disclosed. 

What makes SASB different? 

Existing sustainability reporting entities provide guidelines 

or frameworks. They do not follow a standard process for determining 

the materiality of issues within each industry, nor 

do they provide industry-specific performance metrics. They 

are not designed for concise nor integrated disclosure in 10-K 

or 20-F forms, which are appropriate disclosure channels to 

provide investors with a complete view of material financial 

and sustainability information. 

SASB’s sustainability accounting standards are the first that 

truly enable comparisons of peer performance and benchmarking 

within an industry. SASB’s unique focus on US public 

equities, approaches to industry-specific issues, and disclosure 

of minimum performance standards differentiates it from 

existing sustainability frameworks. 

Board of Directors 

SASB’s Board of Directors is responsible for articulating and 

upholding the vision, values, and mission of SASB. Among its 

members are Michael R. Bloomberg (Founder of Bloomberg LP, 

and the 108th Mayor of New York City), Dr. Bob Eccles (Professor 

of Management Practice, Harvard Business School), Jack Ehnes 

(CEO, CalSTRS), and Mary Schapiro (Former Chairman, SEC). 

184 


Agenda 

Trends in CSR 

Sector Industries Release Status 

Healthcare 

Biotechnology, Pharmaceuticals, 

Medical Equipment & Supplies, Healthcare Delivery, 

Healthcare Distributors, Managed Care 

July 31, 2013 

Issued 

Financials 

Commercial Banks, Investment Banking & Brokerage, 

Asset Management & Custody Activities, 

Consumer Finance, Mortgage Finance, 

Security & Commodity Exchanges, Insurance 

February 25, 2014 

Issued 

Technology & 

Communications 

Electronic Manufacturing Services & 

Original Design Manufacturing, Software & IT Services, 

Hardware, Semiconductors, Telecommunications, 

Internet Media & Services 

April 2, 2014 

Issued 

Non-Renewable 

Resources 

Oil & Gas – Exploration & Production, 

Oil & Gas – Midstream, 

Oil & Gas – Refining & Marketing, 

Oil & Gas – Services, Coal Operations, 

Iron & Steel Producers, Metals & Mining, 

Construction Materials 

June 25, 2014 

Issued 

Transportation 

Automobiles, Auto Parts, Car Rental & Leasing, 

Airlines, Air Freight & Logistics, 

Marine Transportation, Rail Transportation, 

Road Transportation 

September 2014 

Public Comment 

Services 

Education, Professional Services, Hotels & Lodging, 

Casinos & Gambling, Restaurants, Leisure Facilities, 

Cruise Lines, Advertising & Marketing, 

Media Production & Distribution, Cable & Satellite 

December 2014 

Incorporating 

IWG Feedback 

Resource 

Transformation 

Chemicals, Aerospace & Defense, Electrical / Electronic 

Equipment, Industrial Machinery & Goods, 

Containers & Packaging 

February 2015 

Not started 

Consumption I 

Agricultural Products, Meat, Poultry, 

Dairy & Fishing, Processed Foods, 

Non-Alcoholic Beverages, Alcoholic Beverages, 

Tobacco, Household & Personal Products 

June 2015 

Not started 

Consumption II 

Mass Merchants, Food Retailers (& Distributors), 

Drug Retailers & Convenience Stores, 

Specialty Retailers (& Distributors), 

E-Commerce, Apparel, Accessories & Footwear, 

Home & Office Products, Leisure Products 

August 2015 

Not started 

Renewable Resources 

& Alternative Energy 

Biofuels, Solar Energy, Wind Energy, 

Geothermal Energy, Nuclear Energy, Renewable Energy 

Project Developers, Independent Power Producers & 

Energy Traders, Forestry & Paper 

November 2015 

Not started 

Infrastructure 

Water Utilities, Integrated Utilities, Electric Utilities, 

Gas Utilities, Waste Management, 

Infrastructure Construction, Architecture, Engineering 

& Construction, Home Builders, Real Estate Owners & 

Developers, Real Estate Investment Trusts 

April 2016 

Not started 


EUROPEAN UNION 

INTRODUCES 

MANDATORY REPORTING 

In April 2014 the European Parliament adopted the long-awaited directive on the 

disclosure of nonfinancial and diversity information by certain large companies, 

amending the 2013 Accounting Directive. The directive, which adopts a reportor-explain 

approach, introduces measures that will strengthen the transparency 

and accountability of an estimated 6,000 companies in the EU. 

A last-minute compromise deal between EU Member States and 

European Parliament negotiators means that listed companies 

will, for the first time, be required to report on key human 

rights and environmental issues, including within the supply 

chain, if the law is adopted later by the Parliament’s plenary 

and the Council. 

“This vote is a victory for transparency and this is a great day for 

the future of sustainability reporting,” says Teresa Fogelberg, 

Deputy Director of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). “This 

agreement demonstrates the EU’s strong commitment to corporate 

transparency and sustainability – supporting smart, 

sustainable, and inclusive growth, and paving the way for a 

sustainable global economy.” 

The new rules will only apply to certain large companies with 

more than 500 employees. In particular, large public-interest 

entities with more than 500 employees will be required to 

disclose certain nonfinancial information in their management 

reports. This includes listed companies as well as some unlisted 

companies, such as banks, insurance companies, and other 

companies that are so designated by Member States because 

of their activities, size, or number of employees. 

“It is estimated that some 6,000 companies will fall under the 

scope of the directive. To put this in perspective, there are 

currently approximately 2,500 global organization sustainability 

reports in the GRI Global Database, which represents 

one of the most comprehensive databases of sustainability 

reporting,” explains Louis D Coppola from the G&A Institute. 

Scope and range were weakened during the preparation 

The compromise has been welcomed as a timid step forward by 

the European Coalition for Corporate Justice (ECCJ) – a broad 

coalition representing NGOs, consumer groups, trade unions, 

and academics who have been urging legislative reform. But a 

spokesperson for ECCJ said they were disappointed that some 

Member States had weakened the proposal. The European 

Parliament’s legal affairs committee had asked for clearer and 

more demanding reporting by all large companies. 

ECCJ coordinator Jerome Chaplier says: “This is an important 

step forward, as it means citizens and investors will have access 

to meaningful information from companies – rather than the 

selective and often misleading data currently provided. They 

will have to release details of important risks to people and to 

186 


Agenda 

Trends in CSR 

the environment. This means a listed large oil company will 

have to report on its oil spills and the health risks from gas 

flaring, for example, or a listed clothing retailer will have to 

consider risks in its supply chain.” 

Original proposals to extend the law to all large companies 

were blocked by some national governments, who also inserted 

a number of loopholes, which could mean some companies 

will be able to avoid reporting. 

Jerome Chaplier added: “Some Member States have sought to 

water down this legislation, weakening its scope and power. 

Some of the clauses introduced could be used by companies to 

limit what they report, effectively undermining the intentions 

of this reform. The European Commission must be ambitious 

in the way this reform is implemented and ensure that misleading 

information provided by companies can be challenged.” 

Flexibility by choosing the adequate standard 

The directive leaves significant flexibility for companies to 

disclose relevant information in the way that they consider 

most useful, or in a separate report. Companies may use international, 

European, or national guidelines that they consider 

appropriate (for instance, the UN Global Compact, ISO 26000, 

or the German Sustainability Code). Fogelberg from GRI added: 

“This is a truly historic moment, and I am confident that this is 

just the beginning of a new era for transparency and sustainable 

and inclusive growth in the EU.” 

Guidelines for companies on how to report under the new 

reform, including on water use, land use, greenhouse gas 

emissions, and use of materials, are expected from the European 

Commission within the next two years. The legislation 

is expected to be reviewed after four years. 

“The demand by investors and civil society for greater transparency 

and accountability of undertakings is growing,” says 

MEP Raffaele Baldassarre. “The new rules will enable forwardlooking 

business leaders to address this demand and to fully 

make use of the huge potential of CSR in order to increase their 

competitiveness while contributing to smart and sustainable 

growth in Europe.” 

Sources: European Union, European Coalition for Corporate Justice, 

Global Reporting Initiative, G&A Institute 


RESOURCES 

Key Global Compact Resources 

Blueprint for Corporate 

Sustainability Leadership 

within the Global Compact 

UN Global Compact 

Management Model 

Global Corporate 

Sustainability Report 2013 

UN Global Compact – 

Corporate Sustainability in 

the World Economy 

Architects of a Better 

World: Building the 

Post-2015 Business 

Engagement Architecture 

Human Rights 

Guiding Principles for 

Business and Human 

Rights: Implementing the 

United Nations “Protect, 

Respect and Remedy” 

Framework 

Guide on How to Develop a 

Human Rights Policy 

Human Rights and 

Business Dilemmas Forum 

http://human-rights. 

unglobalcompact.org/ 

Some Key Business 

and Human Rights 

Guidance Materials and 

How to Use Them 

Business and Human 

Rights Learning Tool 

http://human-rights-andbusiness-learning-tool. 

unglobalcompact.org/ 

Labour 

The Labour Principles of 

the UN Global Compact – 

A Guide for Business 

ILO Helpdesk 

These and more recources on: http://www.unglobalcompact.org/resources 

Eliminating Child Labour – 

Guides for Employers 

From Principles to Practice: 

The Role of SA8000 

in Implementing the 

UN Global Compact 

Disability in the Workplace 

– Company Practices 

188 


RESOURCES 


Sections 

Environment 

Caring for Climate – 

Brochure 

The CEO Water Mandate 

Brochure 

Sustainable Energy for All: 

The Business Opportunity 

The Guide for Responsible 

Corporate Engagement in 

Climate Policy 

A Framework for Corporate 

Action on Biodiversity and 

Ecosystem 

Anti-Corruption 

Business Against 

Corruption – A Framework 

for Action 

Reporting Guidance on 

the 10th Principle Against 

Corruption 

The Fight Against Corruption: 

E-Learning Tool 

http://thefightagainstcorruption.org/certificate/ 

A Guide for Anti-Corruption 

Risk Assessment 

Fighting Corruption in 

Sport Sponsorship and 

Sport Related Hospitality: 

A Practical Guide for 

Companies 

Reporting 

Human Rights 

COP Reporting Guidance 

Basic Guide to the 

Communication on 

Progress 

Making the Connection – 

Using GRI’s Guidelines to 

Create a COP 

Your Path to 

External Assessment 

Human Rights 

COP Reporting Guidance 

Reporting Guidance on 

the 10th Principle Against 

Corruption 

These and more recources on: http://www.unglobalcompact.org/resources 


EDITORIAL BOARD 

Our Editorial Board Members help us identify and locate core corporate sustainability issues that 

the editorial section of the Yearbook should cover. The Global Compact International Yearbook 

has been published since 2009 by the macondo publishing GmbH in cooperation with the Global 

Compact Office. It is a grassroots publication by participants for participants. With a distributed 

circulation of 10,000 copies around the globe, the yearbook has a significant range within the 

global corporate responsibility community. Editorial Board Members are (in alphabetic order): 

Peter Conze, 

Co-Founder of Transparency 

International, Former Head of the 

Africa Department of GTZ 

Diana Chávez, 

Director Latin American & 

Carribean Regional Center 

of the Global Compact 

Mark Lee, 

Executive Director, 

SustainAbility 

Habiba Al Marashi, 

Chairperson Emirates 

Environmental Group, 

President UNGC Network GCC States 

Prof. Andreas Rasche, 

Copenhagen Business School, 

Deptartment of Intercultural 

Communication and Management 

Prof. Josef Wieland, 

Chair German Business Ethics Network, 

Director Leadership Excellence 

Institute Zeppelin 

Ex-Officio 

Simon Zadek, 

Senior Fellow at the Global Green Growth 

Institute and the International Institute 

of Sustainable Development 

Dr. Elmer Lenzen, 

CEO macondo publishing GmbH, 

Publisher Global Compact International 

Yearbook 

Carrie Hall, 

Head of Communications 

& Information, 

Global Compact 

190 



Sections 

GLOBAL COMPACT 

INTERNATIONAL YEARBOOK 

EDITIONS 2009 – 2014 

Main Issues: 

• Climate Change 

• Water 

• Financial Crisis 

• Global Compact Inside 

Main Issues: 

• 10th Anniversary 

• Biodiversity 

• Corporate Citizenship 

• MDGs 

Main Issues: 

• Blueprint for Corporate Sustainability 

• Standards and Labels 

• Rio + 20 

• Inside ... MENA Region 

Main Issues: 

• Rio + 20 

• Strategic Philanthropy 

• CSR in Latin America 

• Corporate Foresight 

Main Issues: 

• Stakeholder Management 


• CSR in Africa 

• Integrated Reporting 

Main Issues: 

• The Post-2015 Agenda 


• Traceability 

• Trends in CSR 


Publishing House: 

macondo publishing GmbH 

Publisher: 


Editorial Staff: 

Marion Lenzen (Senior Editor), Sonja Scheferling (Editor), 

Malte Klingenhäger (Editor) 

Photo Director: 

Marion Lenzen 

Art Director: 

Magnus A. Sundermann 

Text Editor: 

Robert Furlong 

Translations: 

Casey Butterfield 

Application and Approval Process to Participate: 

Starting on 25 February, 2011, all business participants that 

have submitted a Communication on Progress (COP) will 

be classified in one of two categories, based on the Global 

Compact Differentiation Programme. The Differentiation 

Programme reinforces the Global Compact’s objective of 

changing business practices through transparency, dialogue, 

and stakeholder vetting. So all companies classified as 

“GC Active level” or “GC Advanced level” are supposed to have 

created a meaningful vetting process of the accuracy of their 

disclosure and performance. In this process companies also 

pass an application and approval process to participate in the 

Global Compact International Yearbook. 

Authors of this edition (in alphabetical order): 

Shimaa Abdelfadeel, Pierina Amayo, Markus Arbenz, Tony 

Awad, Jonathan Aylen, Peter Bakker, Dr. Ralf Barkemeyer, 

Yvonne Benkert, Martina Biendl, Aiko Bode, Conradin Bolliger, 

Sandrine Bouttier-Stref, Tatiana Campos-Rocha, Alannah 

Cervenko, Camilla Crone Jensen, Dr. Paul Dewick, Scott Dille, 

Dr. Brigitte Dittrich-Krämer, Ralf Dürrwang, Marga Edens, 

Dr. Frank Fabian, Prof. Dr. Frank Figge, Christiana Figueres, 

Lilian Furrer, Sigmar Gabriel, Perihan Abdel Ghaly, Natalia 

Gonchar, Dr. Tobias Hahn, Maha Hasebou, Vera Heyes, 

Caroline Hickson, Patrik Hiselius, Jacqueline Houweling, 

Klaus Hübscher, Yashna Islam, Georg Kell, Robert Kirkpatrick, 

Nicole Knapp, Karin Kreider, Pauline Lacroix, James Leaton, 

Prof. Dr. Klaus M. Leisinger, Dr. Elmer Lenzen, Laurent 

Lhopitallier, Dr. Andrea Liesen, Dr. Markus Loewe, Antonio 

Luz-Veloso, Anna Lygina, Dr. Utkarsh Majmudar, Bineta 

Mbacke, Elena Mocanu, Jean-Christophe Mollaret, May 

Myat Thu, Paula Niemistö, Rúbia Piancastelli, Namrata 

Rana, Gabriele Renner, Jeffrey Revels, Elga D. Reyes, Syed 

Najmus Saquib, Maren Sartory, Alexandra Sauer, Deniz Sazak, 

Michael Scheidegger, Dr. Nicola Schuldt-Baumgart, Bernhard 

Schwager, Christoph Selig, Juan Ramón Silva Ferrada, Mara 

Simonini, Remigiusz Skiba, Dr. Thomas Steg, Dr. Immanuel 

Stieß, Dr. Andrea Stögbauer, Ingrid Stuurman, Dr.-Ing. 

Peter F. Tropschuh, Julia Vol, Dr. Antonia Wadé, Christian 

Waffenschmidt, Kerstin Wolf, Rachid Zarrad, Elena Zhuravleva 

Solely responsible for the editorial contributions under the 

heading “Good Practice” are the companies themselves. 

Named articles do not reflect the opinions of the publisher. 

Photo Credits: 

UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe (p. 3), UN Global Compact (p. 4/5), 

UN Photo/Albert Gonzalez Farran (p. 6 left, 8/9), Andrea 

Boldizsar/unsplash (p. 6 right, 40/41), jjayo/Fotolia.com 

(p. 7 left, 60/61), Kzenon/Fotolia.com (p. 7 right, 172/173), 

UN Photo/Sophia Paris (p. 10), claudiozacc/Fotolia.com 

(p. 11), Minerva Studio/Fotolia.com (p. 13), photo 5000/ 

Fotolia.com (p. 15 right), Dr. Markus Loewe (p. 15 below), 

vichie81/Fotolia.com (p. 16), Elmer Lenzen (p. 17 above), 

J. Hill-Landolt/WBCSD (p. 17 below), Anna Luise/Fotolia.com 

(p. 19), photosoup/Fotolia.com (p. 20 left), Dan Zirakzadeh 

Photography/Fotolia.com (p. 20 right), B. Wylezich/Fotolia. 

com (p. 22), OlegD/Fotolia.com (p. 23), Novartis International 

AG (p. 23 below), cristovao31/Fotolia.com (p. 24/25), Monkey 

Business/Fotolia.com (p. 27 left), Julia Vol (p. 28 left below), 

PH-Foto/Peter Heimpel/Fotolia.com (p. 28 right below), 

Dr. Paul Dewick (p. 32 left), Jonathan Aylen (p. 32 right), 

Robert Kirkpatrick (p. 35), UNFCCC (p. 42), gmalandra/ 

istockphoto.com (p. 43), Balalaika/istockphoto.com (p. 45), 

James Leaton (p. 47), Viktor Cap/Fotolia.com (p. 48 left), 

goodluz/Fotolia.com (p. 48 right, 66 left), Goran Bogicevic/ 

Fotolia.com (p. 49), nyul/Fotolia.com (p. 50 left, 187), 

Jan Jansen/Fotolia.com (p. 50 right), Edler von Rabenstein/ 

Fotolia.com (p. 51 above), Dr. Nicola Schuldt-Baumgart/ 

J.Laackman PSL-Studios (p. 51 left below), juergenmai.com 

(p. 51 right below), Bundesregierung/Susanne Eriksson 

(p. 55), EC/Christian Lambiotte (p. 58 above), Elena Mocanu 

(p. 58 below), jcarillet/istockphoto.com (p. 62 left), 

PisitBurana/istockphoto.com (p. 62 right), Mayumi Terao/ 

istockphoto.com (p. 64 left), Walter Smith/Rainforest 

Alliance/ISEAL (p. 64 right), drewhadley/istockphoto.com 

(p. 65 right), Karin Kreider/ISEAL (p. 65 below), Jason Lugo/ 

istockphoto.com (p. 66 right), Anthony Leopold/Fotolia.com 

(p. 67 right), Volker Lannert/IFOAM (p. 67 below), Renato 

Calò/istockphoto.com (p. 68 left), positief/istockphoto.com 

(p. 68 right), Enrico Mantegazza/Fotolia.com (p. 69 right), 

192 



Sections 

Caroline Hickson/Fairtrade International (p. 69 below), 

CROSS DESIGN/Fotolia.com (p. 70 right), Pavel Losevsky/ 

Fotolia.com (p. 71 right), TomasSereda/istockphoto.com 

(p. 72 left), WFP/Vanessa Vick (p. 72 right), konradlew/ 

istockphoto.com (p. 73 right), Elga D. Reyes (p. 73 below), 

Rob Bouwman/Fotolia.com (p. 74 left), Irishka1/istockphoto. 

com (p. 74 right), Lsantilli/Fotolia.com (p. 75 right), 

UN Photo (p. 78/79), Banca Popolare di Sondrio (p. 80/81), 

Green Delta Insurance (p. 83), Sanofi (p. 84), Franck Parisot 

(p. 85), Tristan Parry (p. 87 above), Sanofi Turkey (p. 87 below), 

Sartex (p. 88/89), sweetlove yasmine/Teck (p. 90), 

TeliaSonera (p. 92), Lars-Åke Johansson (p. 93), German 

Sheyn (p. 94), Transaero Airlines (p. 95), Yüksel (p. 96/97), 

Adecco (p. 98/99), u.r.foto/Audi (p. 100), Audi (p. 101), 

Copeinca (p. 102/103), performance international (p. 104/105), 

PostNL (p. 106/107), RWE (p. 109), Air France - KLM (p. 112), 

Philippe Delafosse/Air France (p. 113), AAIB (p. 114/115), 

CCC (p. 116/117), Coop (p. 118/119), EDF/Philippe Eranian 

(p. 120/121), Annett B./pixelio.de (p. 123), Eric Vidal/GDF Suez 

(p. 125), MAN Truck & Bus (p. 126), MAN (p. 127-129), 

Metso (p. 130), Novo Nordisk (p. 132), Sakhalin Energy 

(p. 134/135), TRANSLINK (p. 136), Etienne de Malglaive – 

Capa Pictures©Thales (p. 137), Weidmüller (p. 138/139 

below), Christoph Leniger (p. 139 above), Deutsche Bahn 

(p. 140/141), Volkswagen (p. 142/143), agafapaperiapunta/ 

istockphoto.com (p. 144/145), BASF (p. 147), Bosch 

(p. 148/149), Jon Mullen/istockphoto.com (p. 150), The TMS 

Group (p. 153), Acciona (p. 154), Rix Ryan Photography 

(p. 155), Aya Bank (p. 156-159), Deutsche Post DHL (p. 160- 

163), Nana Kofi Acquah/Nestlé (p. 164), Isabelle Ribeiro/ 

Nestlé (p. 165), Sayga (p. 167), SK (p. 169), Bradesco (p. 170), 

Aerogondo/Fotolia.com (p. 174, 177), francescoridolfi.com/ 

Fotolia.com (p. 178), ramstock/Fotolia.com (p. 183 above), 

Dr. Utkarsh Majmudar (p. 183 left below), Namrata Rana 

(p. 183 right below) and Marion Lenzen (p. 12, 15 left, 18, 

27 right, 28 above, 31, 46, 56, 63 right, 70 left, 110/111, 179) 

Cover: 

UN Photo / Martine Perret 

Sales price: 

USD 30.00 | EUR 25.00 | GBP 20.00 

Copyright © macondo publishing GmbH 

Useful Addresses: 

Publishing House: 

macondo publishing GmbH 

Dahlweg 87 

48153 Münster, Germany 

Tel.: +49 (0) 251 – 200 78 20 

Fax: +49 (0) 251 – 200 78 222 

Mail: info@macondo.de 

URL: www.macondo-group.com 

Tax ID number: DE 292 662 536 

United Nations Global Compact Office: 

DC2-618 

New York, NY 10017, USA 

Tel.: +1 (212) 963 - 1490 

Fax: +1 (212) 963 - 1207 

Mail: globalcompact@un.org 

URL: www.unglobalcompact.org 

United Nations Publications: 

Department of Public Information 

300 East 42nd Street, IN-919 C 

New York, NY 10017 

Sales no. E.12.II.A.1 

ISBN-13: 978-3-9813540-7-2 

Price USD: $ 30.00 

Copyrights: 

All rights reserved. You may not modify, copy, reproduce, 

republish, upload, post, transmit or distribute in any way 

any material, including photos, without the express written 

consent of macondo publishing GmbH. 

ISBN-13: 978-3-9813540-7-2 

Printed in Germany © 2014 

carbon neutral 

natureOffice.com | DE-223-321930 

print production 


THE TEN PRINCIPLES 

OF THE UNITED NATIONS 

GLOBAL COMPACT 

At the core of the 

Global Compact initiative are 

10 principles for human rights, 

labour standards, 

the environment and 

eliminating corruption. 

The Global Compact calls 

upon all companies to 

recognise these principles 

and to take steps to put them 

into effect. 

1 

2 

HUMAN RIGHTS 

Principle 1: Businesses 

should support and 

respect the protection of 

internationally proclaimed 

human rights; and 

Principle 2: make sure that 

they are not complicit 

in human rights abuses. 

7 

8 

ENVIRONMENT 


should support a 

precautionary approach to 

environmental challenges; 

Principle 8: undertake 

initiatives to promote 

greater environmental 

responsibility; and 

3 

4 

LABOUR STANDARDS 


should uphold the freedom 

of association and the 

effective recognition of 

the right to collective 

bargaining; 

Principle 4: the elemination 

of all forms of forced 

and compulsory labour; 

9 

10 

Principle 9: encourage the 

development and diffusion 

of environmentally friendly 

technologies. 

ANTI-CORRUPTION 


should work against 

corruption in all it forms, 

including extortion and 

bribery. 

5 

Principle 5: the 

effective abolition of 

child labour; and 

6 

Principle 6: the elemination 

of discrimination in 

respect of employment 

and occupation. 

194 


This publication is intended strictly for learning purposes. The inclusion of company names and / or 

examples does not constitute an endorsement of the individual companies by the UN Global Compact. 


“ 

Transforming the global 

economy and changing the course 

of our future is an imposing task. 

But if we all contribute, the work 

will be easier. 

” 

Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General 

General yearbook informations at international-yearbook.com 

All content is online available at csr-academy.org 

USD 30 

ISBN 978-3-9813540-7-2 

Published by 

Global Logistics Partner 

In cooperation with United Nations Publications 

Printed in Germany, July 2014 – 10,000 

196

Global Compact International Yearbook 2014

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